Othaya is a Kenyan town about 120 kilometres north of Nairobi, the capital. It has a population of 21,427, of which 4,108 are core urban (1999 census ^[1]); the majority of the residents are of the Kikuyu tribe. Othaya is part of the Nyeri County. It has been a traditionally agricultural area with coffee and tea as the main cash crops, with many residents being subsistence farmers. Othaya is home to Chinga dam, the largest water reservoir in Nyeri County.

Mwai Kibaki, the third President of Kenya, as well as the third Member of Parliament of Othaya (1974-2013) was born in Gatuyaini, a village in Othaya. Other prominent people from Othaya are Isaac Kega Muthua, the second Member of Parliament of Othaya (1969-1974) and Councillor of Mahiga Ward for 20 years. His son Samuel Nuthu Kega served as Councillor of Mahiga Ward for 5 years. Gibson Kamau Kuria, a prominent Nairobi Lawyer also hails from Othaya, and so is Mary Wambüi Münene, a former (and the only female thus far) Othaya MP from 2013 to 2017.

Othaya forms a town council, which has five wards: Kanyange, Kianganda, Nduye River, Nyamari and Thuti. All of them are part of Othaya Constituency.^[2] Othaya serves as the headquarters of Othaya administrative division, which has four locations: Chinga, Iria-Ini, Karima and Mahiga. Othaya division has a population of 88,291 (1999 census^[3]). Othaya division has common borders with Othaya constituency, which Mwai Kibaki represented in parliament up to 2013. The current member of parliament is Hon. Wambugu Wainaina of UDA, elected in the 2022 general elections. Prominent institutions of education in Othaya town include Othaya Boys' High School, Stellamaris Othaya Girls' High School, Chinga Boys' High School, and a number of other schools.

The Othaya Stadium acts as the town's main public square for social and political meetings, as well as hosting various sporting and entertainment events in the town.