Kenya Population: 41,070,934
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| Background | |
| Founding president and liberation struggle icon Jomo KENYATTA led Kenya from independence in 1963 until his death in 1978, when President Daniel Toroitich arap MOI took power in a constitutional succession. The country was a de facto one-party state from 1969 until 1982 when the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU) made itself the sole legal party in Kenya. MOI acceded to internal and external pressure for political liberalization in late 1991. The ethnically fractured opposition failed to dislodge KANU from power in elections in 1992 and 1997, which were marred by violence and fraud, but were viewed as having generally reflected the will of the Kenyan people. President MOI stepped down in December 2002 following fair and peaceful elections. Mwai KIBAKI, running as the candidate of the multiethnic, united opposition group, the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC), defeated KANU candidate Uhuru KENYATTA and assumed the presidency following a campaign centered on an anticorruption platform. KIBAKI's NARC coalition splintered in 2005 over a constitutional review process. Government defectors joined with KANU to form a new opposition coalition, the Orange Democratic Movement, which defeated the government's draft constitution in a popular referendum in November 2005. KIBAKI's reelection in December 2007 brought charges of vote rigging from ODM candidate Raila ODINGA and unleashed two months of violence in which as many as 1,500 people died. UN-sponsored talks in late February produced a powersharing accord bringing ODINGA into the government in the restored position of prime minister. Kenya in August 2010 adopted a new constitution that eliminates the role of prime minister after the next presidential election. |
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| Geography | |
| The Kenyan Highlands comprise one of the most successful agricultural production regions in Africa; glaciers are found on Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest peak; unique physiography supports abundant and varied wildlife of scientific and economic value | |
| Location: | Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania |
| Geographic coordinates: | 1 00 N, 38 00 E |
| Area: | total: 580,367 sq km land: 569,140 sq km water: 11,227 sq km Size comparison: slightly more than twice the size of Nevada |
| Land Boundaries: | total: 3,477 km border countries: Ethiopia 861 km, Somalia 682 km, South Sudan 232 km, Tanzania 769 km, Uganda 933 km |
| Coastline: | 536 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
| Climate: | varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior |
| Terrain: | low plains rise to central highlands bisected by Great Rift Valley; fertile plateau in west |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Kenya 5,199 m |
| Natural resources: | limestone, soda ash, salt, gemstones, fluorspar, zinc, diatomite, gypsum, wildlife, hydropower |
| Land use: | arable land: 8.01% permanent crops: 0.97% other: 91.02% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 1,030 sq km (2008) |
| Natural hazards: | recurring drought; flooding during rainy seasons volcanism: Kenya experiences limited volcanic activity; the Barrier (elev. 1,032 m) last erupted in 1921; South Island is the only other historically active volcano |
| Current Environment Issues: | water pollution from urban and industrial wastes; degradation of water quality from increased use of pesticides and fertilizers; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; poaching |
| International Environment Agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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| People | |
| Population: | 41,070,934 (July 2011 est.) note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 42.2% (male 8,730,845/female 8,603,270) 15-64 years: 55.1% (male 11,373,997/female 11,260,402) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 497,389/female 605,031) (2011 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 18.9 years male: 18.8 years female: 19 years (2011 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 2.462% (2011 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 33.54 births/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Death rate: | 8.93 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 52.29 deaths/1,000 live births male: 55.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 49.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 59.48 years male: 58.91 years female: 60.07 years (2011 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 4.19 children born/woman (2011 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 6.3% (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 1.5 million (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 80,000 (2009 est.) |
| Nationality: | noun: Kenyan(s) adjective: Kenyan |
| Ethnic groups: | Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1% |
| Religions: | Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, Muslim 10%, indigenous beliefs 10%, other 2% note: a large majority of Kenyans are Christian, but estimates for the percentage of the population that adheres to Islam or indigenous beliefs vary widely |
| Languages: | English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.1% male: 90.6% female: 79.7% (2003 est.) |
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| Government | |
| Country name: | conventional long form: Republic of Kenya conventional short form: Kenya local long form: Republic of Kenya/Jamhuri ya Kenya local short form: Kenya former: British East Africa |
| Government type: | republic |
| Capital: | name: Nairobi geographic coordinates: 1 17 S, 36 49 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions: | 7 provinces and 1 area*; Central, Coast, Eastern, Nairobi Area*, North Eastern, Nyanza, Rift Valley, Western; note - the constitution promulgated in August 2010 designates 47 yet-to-be-defined counties as first-order administrative units |
| Independence: | 12 December 1963 (from the UK) |
| National holiday: | Independence Day, 12 December (1963); Madaraka Day, 1 June; Mashujaa Day, 20 October |
| Constitution: | 27 August 2010; the new constitution abolishes the position of prime minister and establishes a bicameral legislature; many details have yet to be finalized and will require significant legislative action |
| Legal system: | mixed legal system of English common law, Islamic law, and customary law; judicial review in High Court |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002); Vice President Stephen Kalonzo MUSYOKA (since 10 January 2008); head of government: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002); Vice President Stephen Kalonzo MUSYOKA (since 10 January 2008); Prime Minister Raila Amolo ODINGA (since 17 April 2008); note - according to the 2008 powersharing agreement the role of the prime minister was not well defined; constitutionally, the president remains chief of state and head of government, but the prime minister is charged with coordinating government business cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president and chaired by the prime minister, who is the leader of the largest party in parliament (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); in addition to receiving the largest number of votes in absolute terms, the presidential candidate must also win 25% or more of the vote in at least five of Kenya's seven provinces and one area to avoid a runoff; election last held on 27 December 2007 (next to be held in December 2012); vice president appointed by the president; note - the new constitution sets elections for August 2011 but this date is expected to slip election results: President Mwai KIBAKI reelected; percent of vote - Mwai KIBAKI 46%, Raila ODINGA 44%, Kalonzo MUSYOKA 9%, other 3.4% |
| Legislative branch: | unicameral National Assembly or Bunge usually referred to as Parliament (224 seats; 210 members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms, 12 nominated members appointed by the president but selected by the parties in proportion to their parliamentary vote totals, 2 ex-officio members); note - the constitution promulgated in August 2010 changes the legislature to a bicameral parliament consisting of a 290 member National Assembly and a 94 member Senate; parliament members will serve five year terms elections: last held on 27 December 2007 (next to be held in December 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ODM 99, PNU 46, ODM-K 16, KANU 14 other 35; ex-officio 2; seats appointed by the president - ODM 6, PNU 3, ODM-K 2, KANU 1 |
| Judicial branch: | Court of Appeal (chief justice is appointed by the president); High Court; note - the constitution promulgated in August 2010 specifies three superior courts consisting of a Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, and High Court, and three subordinate courts consisting of Magistrate courts, Kadhis courts (sentences according to Muslim law), and Courts Martial |
| Political parties and leaders: | Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-Kenya or FORD-Kenya [Musikari KOMBO]; Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-People or FORD-People [Reuben OYONDI]; Kenya African National Union or KANU [Uhuru KENYATTA]; National Rainbow Coalition-Kenya or NARC-Kenya [Martha KARUA]; Orange Democratic Movement or ODM [Raila ODINGA]; Orange Democratic Movement-Kenya or ODM-K [Kalonzo MUSYOKA]; Party of National Unity or PNU [Mwai KIBAKI]; Shirikisho Party of Kenya or SPK [Chirau Ali MWAKWERE] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | Council of Islamic Preachers of Kenya or CIPK [Sheikh Idris MOHAMMED]; Kenya Human Rights Commission [L. Muthoni WANYEKI]; Muslim Human Rights Forum [Ali-Amin KIMATHI]; National Muslim Leaders Forum or NAMLEF [Abdullahi ABDI]; Protestant National Council of Churches of Kenya or NCCK [Canon Peter Karanja MWANGI]; Roman Catholic and other Christian churches; Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims or SUPKEM [Shaykh Abdul Gafur al-BUSAIDY] other: labor unions |
| International organization participation: | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, EAC, EADB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Elkanah ODEMBO Absalom chancery: 2249 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-6101 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3829 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael E. RANNEBERGER embassy: US Embassy, United Nations Avenue, Nairobi; P. O. Box 606 Village Market, Nairobi 00621 mailing address: Box 21A, Unit 64100, APO AE 09831 telephone: [254] (20) 363-6000 FAX: [254] (20) 363-410 |
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| Economy | |
| Although the regional hub for trade and finance in East Africa, Kenya has been hampered by corruption and by reliance upon several primary goods whose prices have remained low. In 1997, the IMF suspended Kenya's Enhanced Structural Adjustment Program due to the government's failure to maintain reforms and curb corruption. The IMF, which had resumed loans in 2000 to help Kenya through a drought, again halted lending in 2001 when the government failed to institute several anticorruption measures. In the key December 2002 elections, Daniel Arap MOI's 24-year-old reign ended, and a new opposition government took on the formidable economic problems facing the nation. After some early progress in rooting out corruption and encouraging donor support, the KIBAKI government was rocked by high-level graft scandals in 2005 and 2006. In 2006, the World Bank and IMF delayed loans pending action by the government on corruption. The international financial institutions and donors have since resumed lending, despite little action on the government's part to deal with corruption. Post-election violence in early 2008, coupled with the effects of the global financial crisis on remittance and exports, reduced GDP growth to 1.7 in 2008, but the economy rebounded in 2009-10. | |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $66.03 billion (2010 est.) $62.9 billion (2009 est.) $61.31 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | GDP (official exchange rate): $32.16 billion (2010 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 5% (2010 est.) 2.6% (2009 est.) 1.6% (2008 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): $1,600 (2010 est.) $1,600 (2009 est.) $1,600 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 22% industry: 16% services: 62% (2010 est.) |
| Labor force: | 17.9 million (2010 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 75% industry and services: 25% (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate: | 40% (2008 est.) 40% (2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | 50% (2000 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 1.8% highest 10%: 37.8% (2005) |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index: | 42.5 (2008 est.) 44.9 (1997) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4% (2010 est.) 9.2% (2009 est.) |
| Investment (gross fixed): | Investment (gross fixed): 20.7% of GDP (2010 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $7.016 billion expenditures: $9.043 billion (2010 est.) |
| Public debt: | 47.5% of GDP (2010 est.) 46.8% of GDP (2009 est.) |
| Agriculture - products: | tea, coffee, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruit, vegetables; dairy products, beef, pork, poultry, eggs |
| Industries: | small-scale consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, clothing, soap, cigarettes, flour), agricultural products, horticulture, oil refining; aluminum, steel, lead; cement, commercial ship repair, tourism |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 4% (2010 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 6.79 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 5.738 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - exports: | 41 million kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 16 million kWh (2008 est.) |
| Oil - production: | 136 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 78,000 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | 8,061 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - imports: | 80,160 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 0 bbl (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Current account balance: | -$2.024 billion (2010 est.) -$1.661 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports: | $4.984 billion (2010 est.) $4.502 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, cement |
| Exports - partners: | Uganda 10.1%, Tanzania 9.8%, UK 8.8%, Netherlands 8.2%, US 5.8%, Egypt 4.7%, Democratic Republic of the Congo 4.3% (2010) |
| Imports: | $10.63 billion (2010 est.) $9.492 billion (2009 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | machinery and transportation equipment, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics |
| Imports - partners: | China 13.6%, India 13.4%, UAE 9.7%, South Africa 8.4%, Saudi Arabia 6.8%, Japan 4.7% (2010) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $4.321 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $3.85 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Debt - external: | $8.394 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $8.005 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: | $2.336 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $2.129 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: | $320.3 million (31 December 2010 est.) $288.4 million (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares: | $14.46 billion (31 December 2010) $10.76 billion (31 December 2009) $10.92 billion (31 December 2008) |
| Exchange rates: | Kenyan shillings (KES) per US dollar - 79.217 (2010) 77.352 (2009) 68.358 (2008) 68.309 (2007) 72.101 (2006) |
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| Communications | |
| Telephones in use: | 664,100 (2009) country comparison to the world: 91 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 19.365 million (2009) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: inadequate; fixed-line telephone system is small and inefficient; trunks are primarily microwave radio relay; business data commonly transferred by a very small aperture terminal (VSAT) system domestic: sole fixed-line provider, Telkom Kenya, is slated for privatization; multiple providers in the mobile-cellular segment of the market fostering a boom in mobile-cellular telephone usage with teledensity reaching 50 per 100 persons in 2009 international: country code - 254; The East Africa Marine System (TEAMS) and the SEACOM undersea fiber-optic cable systems; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat |
| Radio broadcast stations: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .ke |
| Internet hosts: | 47,676 (2010) |
| Internet users: | 3.996 million (2009) |
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| Transportation | |
| Airports: | 191 (2010) country comparison to the world: 33 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 17 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2010) |
| Airports (unpaved runways): | total: 174 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 107 under 914 m: 55 (2010) |
| Pipelines: | oil 4 km; refined products 928 km (2010) |
| Railways: | total: 2,066 km narrow gauge: 2,066 km 1.000-m gauge (2010) |
| Roadways: | total: 160,886 km paved: 11,197 km unpaved: 149,689 km (2008) |
| Waterways: | (the only significant inland waterway in the country is the part of Lake Victoria within the boundaries of Kenya; Kisumu is the main port and has ferry connections to Uganda and Tanzania) (2010) |
| Merchant marine: | total: 1 by type: petroleum tanker 1 registered in other countries: 5 (Comoros 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 2, Tuvalu 1, unknown 1) (2010) |
| Ports and terminals: | Kisumu, Mombasa |
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| Military | |
| Military branches: | Kenya Armed Services: Kenya Army, Kenya Navy, Kenya Air Force (2011) |
| Military service age and obligation: | 18-26 years of age for male and female voluntary service (under 18 with parental consent), with a 9-year obligation (7 years for Kenyan Navy); applicants must be Kenyan citizens and provide a national identity card (obtained at age 18) and a school-leaving certificate; women serve under the same terms and conditions as men; mandatory retirement at age 55 (2011) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 9,768,140 females age 16-49: 9,466,257 (2010 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 6,361,268 females age 16-49: 6,106,870 (2010 est.) |
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