Kenya, republic (224,960 sq mi/582,646 sq km; 1991 estimated population 25,241,980; 2004 estimated population 32,021,856), E Africa, (cap.) Nairobi; other cities include Mombasa (the chief port), Nakuru, Kisumu, and Eldoret .
Geography
Kenya is divided into the following six provinces: Central, Coast, Eastern, North Eastern, Nyanza, and Western. The country is bordered by Somalia on the E, the Indian Ocean on the SE, Tanzania on the S, Lake Victoria (Victoria Nyanza) on the SW, Uganda on the W, the Sudan on the NW, and Ethiopia on the N. The country, which lies astride the equator, is made up of several geographical regions. The first is a narrow, coastal strip that is low-lying except for the Taita Hills in the S. The second, an inland region of bush-covered plains, constitutes most of the country’s land area. In the NW, straddling Lake Turkana (Rudolf) and the Kulal Mountains, are high-lying scrublands. In the SW are the fertile grasslands, and forests of the Kenya highlands. In the W is the Great Rift Valley, an irregular depression that cuts through W Kenya from N to S in two branches. It is also the location of some of the country’s highest mountains, including Mount Kenya (17,058 ft/5,199 m). Kenya’s main rivers are the Tana and the Athi.
Population
People of African descent make up about 99% of the population; they are divided into forty-two ethnic groups, of which the Bantu-speaking Kikuyu, Kamba, Gusii, and Luhya and the Nilotic-speaking Luo are predominant. Small numbers of persons of Indian, Pakistani, Goan, and European descent live in the interior, and there are some Arabs along the coast. The national language of Kenya is Swahili, but English is the offficial language which is spoken widely in commercial affairs. Most of the population is Christian, about one-fifth follows traditional religious beliefs, and the remainder are Muslim or Hindu.
Economy
The great majority of Kenyans are engaged in farming, largely of the subsistence type, but industry is growing. Coffee, tea, sisal, pyrethrum, maize, and wheat are grown in the highlands, mainly on small African-owned farms formed by dividing some of the large, formerly European-owned estates. Coconuts, cashew nuts, cotton, sugarcane, sisal, and maize are grown in the lower-lying areas. Much of the country remains savanna, where large numbers of cattle are pastured. Kenya’s manufacture includes chemicals, processed food, cement, textiles, leather goods, and fabricated metal products. Industrial development has been hampered by poor infrastructure, corruption, limits on imports, and shortages in hydroelectric power. The chief minerals produced are limestone, soda ash, gold, and salt. Kenya attracts many tourists, largely lured by its coastal beaches and varied wildlife, which are protected in a number of national parks. Kenya’s chief exports are coffee and tea; fluctuations in their world prices have tremendous economic impact. The leading imports are petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, and machinery; trade is mainly with Great Britain, Uganda, and the U.S. The nation’s popultion growth continually exceeds the rate of its economic growth, resulting in large budget deficits and high unemployment. A large portion of the industrial sector is foreign owned. Kenya has a well-developed transportation system and in the 1980s the railroad lines were further improved. Kenya is a member of the Commonwealth and is an ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) member of the EEC. In 1967, Kenya formed the East African Development Bank with Tanzania and Uganda. There are a number of universities including the University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University, Egerton University, and Moi University.
History to 1887
Some of the earliest remains of hominids who lived c.2 million years ago have been discovered in Kenya. The existence of farming and domestic herds can be dated to c.1000 B.C. Trade between the Kenya coast and Arabia was brisk by A.D. 100. Arabs settled on the coast during medieval times, and they soon established several autonomous city-states (including Mombasa, Malindi, and Pate). Farmers and herders traveled S from Ethiopia and settled in Kenya in c.2000 B.C.; there is also evidence that Bantu-speaking people and Nilotic speakers from the S Sudan settled in Kenya between 500 B.C. and 500 A.D. The Portuguese first visited the Kenya coast in 1498, and by the end of the 16th century they controlled much of it. However, in 1729, the Portuguese were permanently expelled from Mombasa and were replaced as the leading power on the coast by Arab dynasties. From the early 19th century there was long-distance caravan trading between Mombasa and Lake Victoria. Beginning in the mid-19th century, European explorers (especially John Ludwig Krapf and Joseph Thomson) mapped parts of the interior. The British and German governments agreed upon spheres of influence in East Africa in 1886, with most of present-day Kenya passing to the British.
History - 1887 to 1920
In 1887, a British association received concessionary rights to the Kenya coast from the sultan of Zanzibar. The association in 1888 was given a royal charter as the Imperial British East African Company, but severe financial difficulties soon led to its takeover by the British government, which established the East African Protectorate (or British East Africa) in 1895. A railraod was built (1895–1901) from Mombasa to Kisumu on Lake Victoria in order to facilitate trade with the interior and with Uganda. In 1903, the first settlers of European descent established themselves as large-scale farmers in the highlands by taking land from the Kikuyu, Maasai, and others. At the same time, Indian merchants moved inland from the coast.
History - 1920 to 1963
In 1920, the territory was renamed and its administration changed; the interior became Kenya Colony and a coastal strip (10 mi/16 km wide) was constituted the Protectorate of Kenya. From the 1920s to the 1940s, European settlers controlled the government and owned extensive farmlands; Indians maintained small trade establishments and were lower-level government employees; and Africans grew cash crops such as coffee and cotton on a small scale, were subsistence farmers, or were laborers in the towns (especially Nairobi). In the 1920s, Africans began to protest their inferior status. Protest reached a peak between 1952 and 1956 with the so-called Mau Mau Emergency, a complex armed revolt led by the Kikuyu, which was in part a rebellion against British rule and in part an attempt to reestablish traditional land rights and ways of governance. The British declared a state of emergency and imprisoned many of the colony’s nationalist leaders, including Jomo Kenyatta. After the revolt, Britain increased African representation in the colony’s legislative council until, in 1961, there was an African majority.
History - 1963 to 1980
On December 12, 1963, Kenya (including both the colony and the protectorate) became independent. In 1964 the country became a republic, with Kenyatta as president. The first decade of independence was characterized by disputes among ethnic groups (especially between the Kikuyu and the Luo), by economic growth and diversification, and by the end of European predominance. Boundary disputes with the Somali Democratic Republic resulted in sporadic fighting (1963–1968). In 1969, Tom Mboya, a leading government official and a possible successor to Kenyatta, was assassinated. More than 70% of the country was affected by the sub-Saharan drought of the early 1970s. Kenyatta’s silencing of opponents led to further unrest domestically. Throughout the 1970s relations with neighboring countries deteriorated as well; there was a territorial dispute with Uganda, and Tanzania closed its border with Kenya after Kenya harbored several of Idi Amin’s supporters after the fall of his regime. After Kenyatta’s death in 1978, Vice President Daniel arap Moi succeeded him as president. Moi promoted the Africanization of industry by placing limits on foreign ownership and by extending credit to African investors. Domestically, he rejected demands for democratization and suppressed opposition. With economic conditions worsening, rumors of a coup led to rioting by students. Moi dismantled the air force and ordered the imprisonment of those suspected of involvement.
History - 1980 to Present
Throughout the 1980s, Moi consolidated power in the presidency and continued to conduct periodic purges of his administration. The worst rioting in the nation’s independent history erupted in 1988 after several outspoken proponents of a multiparty democracy were arrested. Moi was reelected in the 1992 election. Kenya is run by a president, who is assisted by a vice president and a cabinet. In 1992, Kenya became a multiparty democracy. There are several legal political parties, the biggest being the Kenya African National Union. Since 1993 liberalization of the economy has been continuing. Moi stepped down in December of 2002 following fair and peaceful election.
Government
The current chief of state is President Mwai Kibaki. He is also head of government.
