Facts About Kenya

Kenya

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

National Name

Jamhuri ya Kenya

Location

Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania

Capital and largest city (2003 est.)

Nairobi, 3,064,800 (metro. area), 2,411,900 (city proper)

Other large city

Mombasa, 712,600

Geography

Geography Overview

Size 582,650 sq. km, slightly more than twice the size of Nevada, US. Low plains rise to central highlands bisected by the Great Rift Valley with a fertile plateau in the west. Its lowest point of elevation is the Indian Ocean at 0; its highest point of elevation is Mt Kenya which stands at 5,199m. The climate varies from tropical along the coast to arid in the interior. 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, and a unique physiography supports abundant and varied wildlife of scientific and economic value.

Land Boundaries

Ethiopia 861 km, Somalia 682 km, Sudan 232 km, Tanzania 769 km, Uganda 933 km
See Maps

Land area: 219,788 sq. mi (569,251 sq. km)
Total area: 224,962 sq. mi (582,650 sq. km)

The People

Population (2006 est.): 34,707,817 (growth rate: 2.6%)
Birth rate: 39.7/1000
Infant mortality rate: 59.3/1000
Life expectancy: 48.9 years
Density per sq mi: 158
Percent of the population is believed to have HIV/AIDS: 6.7%
Literacy rate: just over 85% (2003 est.)

Languages

English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages

Ethnic Groups

Kikuyu 22%; Luhya 14%; Luo 13%; Kalenjin 12%; Kamba 11%; Kisii 6%; Meru 6%; other African 15%; Asian, European, and Arab 1%

Religion

Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, indigenous beliefs 10%, Islam 10%, others 2% (note: estimates vary widely)

Economics and Industry

Economic Overview

The regional hub for trade and finance in East Africa, Kenya has been hampered by corruption, notably in the judicial system, 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. A severe drought from 1999 to 2000 compounded Kenya's problems, causing water and energy rationing and reducing agricultural output. As a result, GDP contracted by 0.2% in 2000. The IMF, which had resumed loans in 2000 to help Kenya through the drought, again halted lending in 2001 when the government failed to institute several anticorruption measures. Despite the return of strong rains in 2001, weak commodity prices, endemic corruption, and low investment limited Kenya's economic growth to 1.2%. Growth lagged at 1.1% in 2002 because of erratic rains, low investor confidence, meager donor support, and political infighting up to the elections. In the key 27 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. In 2003, progress was made in rooting out corruption, and encouraging donor support, with GDP growth edging up to 1.7%.

Economic Summary

Monetary unit: Kenya Shilling
GDP/PPP: (2005 est.) $39.6 billion; per capita $1,200
Real growth rate: 5.2%
Inflation: 12%
Unemployment: 40% (2001 est.)
Arable land: 8%
Agriculture: tea, coffee, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruit, vegetables; dairy products, beef, pork, poultry, eggs
Labor force: 11.85 million; agriculture 75%, industry and services 25% (2003 est.)
Industries: small-scale consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, soap, cigarettes, flour), agricultural products, oil refining; aluminum, steel, lead; cement, commercial ship repair, tourism
Natural resources: limestone, soda ash, salt, gemstones, fluorspar, zinc, diatomite, gypsum, wildlife, hydropower
Exports: $3.173 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.) tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, and cement
Imports: $5.126 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.) machinery and transportation equipment, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics
Major trading partners: Uganda, UK, U.S., Netherlands, Egypt, Tanzania, Pakistan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, India, China, Japan (2004)

Communications

Telephones: main lines in use: 310,000 (2001); mobile cellular: 540,000 (2001)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 24, FM 18, shortwave 6 (2001)
Radios: 3.07 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 8 (2002)
Televisions: 730,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 65 (2001)
Internet users: 500,000 (2002)

Transportation

Railways: 2,778 km (2002)
Highways: total: 63,942 km; paved: 7,737 km; unpaved: 56,205 km (2000)
Waterways: part of the Lake Victoria system is within the boundaries of Kenya
Ports and harbors: Kisumu, Lamu, Mombasa
Airports: 230 (2002)