Off the busy Kisumu-Kakamega highway in Mwoki, Vihiga County, groups of men and women are busy crushing stones into ballast for sale.
This is how they earn their living.
Some station themselves on the highway hoping to catch potential customers in the construction and building industry.
Mwoki, as with much of Vihiga, is rocky and endowed with huge stones. Some cover large portions of farmland.
Other than turning the huge stones into ballast, there is no major economic value to be gained from them.
But now there is greater hope for Vihiga stone crushers, amid plans by the government to put up a granite factory.
The factory is expected to process the huge stones into cement, ballast, tiles and related products for sale locally and internationally.
As part of the project rollout, residents whose farms have huge stones have been asked to get ready to supply raw materials to the factory once it starts operating.
Emily Atianyi and Jacob Ababu are among the many locals who rely entirely on these stones for a living.
They mine stones and ballast in their quarry and sell them for Sh3,000 per lorry.
On a good day, a minimum of 10 trucks ferry the materials from the quarry.
Locals, however, lack equipment to add any meaningful value to the stones. All they do is crush them using mallets and iron rods, a challenging and tiring task.
But with the planned granite factory, the tedious task of crushing stones will soon be easier.
The factory will earn revenue for the two levels of government, lessen the work of crushing stones and bring in foreign exchange.
Governor Wilber Ottichilo, whose administration is spearheading the project, says the huge stones that were seen as a burden will soon become of greater economic value.
Dr Ottichilo sees the factory as an opportunity to grow the economy, towns, investments and infrastructural development.
He notes that 30 per cent of the land in his county is stony, making the raw material readily available.
"Our people will now supply the stones to the factory at a cost and thereby earn a living. The factory will also create employment and turn around our economy," he says.
He says the Ministry of Mining and Petroleum that will supervise the setting up of the processor has identified an investor from Italy.
The factory will be built in Buyangu in Emuhaya on the Kisumu-Busia highway and is expected to cost Sh100 million.
Dr Ottichilo is excited that residents will start reaping from the stones that are sitting on their farms.
"We have the potential to host the factory because raw materials are available. Thirty per cent of our land is stony. It is time to start the work," he says.
Petroleum and Mining Cabinet Secretary John Munyes had made two visits to the site of the proposed factory.
Dr Ottichilo says the processor is expected to improve the social-economic status of host communities and increase revenues for the county and national governments.
