Yamnat

Yamnat is a former administrative division in the North Eastern State of Kenya. It was one of the eight sub-divisions of the North Eastern Province. The sub-division was situated near the Ethiopian border and encompassed several major towns and rural areas.

Yamnat was created in the 1960s as part of the Kenyan government's efforts to manage its then-colonial North Eastern Province. The division served as an administrative unit for a population of nomadic tribes people and farmers, who primarily engaged in livestock herding and subsistence farming. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the region experienced low rainfall and drought spells, leading to significant challenges for local residents and agriculture.

In the early 1990s, the Kenyan government reorganized its administrative divisions, incorporating Yamnat and some neighboring areas to form the Wajir District. The Wajir District is now part of the larger Wajir County that includes two sub-counties, Wajir East and Wajir West. The status change was designed to promote economic growth, strengthen public services, and simplify governance in the region.

In its final form, Yamnat as a sub-division no longer exists in the Kenyan administrative structure. Although the territory it once spanned remains largely rural and is inhabited primarily by people from ethnic Sahel and society's coastal, inhabitants face challenges posed by limited services, long distances to main centers, and semi-arid weather conditions.