About Kenya

Crib of humans

More than 20 million years ago, a strange thing happened in East Africa: primates stood up on their 2 back legs – and walked. Things in Kenya have come a long way since then, despite serious challenges that slow down the country's development.

Geography & climate

Facing the Indian Ocean on the east coast of Africa, Kenya is bordered by Ethiopia to the north, Somalia to the northeast, Tanzania to the south, Uganda to the west, and Sudan to the northwest. This is a land of glaciers, fertile plains, tropical forests and arid savannas.

Kenya’s highest mountain (and the second highest in Africa), Mount Kenya, shoots up to more than 5,000 m, while the Kenyan Highlands stretch out far below, one of the most successful agricultural production regions in Africa. Climate varies from tropical to arid.

Nature

The Eastern Arc Mountains consist of a complex of ranges and peaks that are among the oldest in Africa, as are the forest communities of the region. The largely intact rangelands of acacia savannas support one of the world's most spectacular migrations of large mammals. The region experiences a dramatic cycle of seasons with periods of drought alternating with monsoon months.

Further to the east, a belt of lowland forests runs along the coast, while further offshore, coral reefs form an almost continuous fringing barrier with neighbouring Tanzania and Mozambique.

Lions, leopards, buffalos, rhinos and elephants share Kenya’s diverse natural habitats along with smaller, but just as intriguing animals such as the aardvark, the bushbaby and the genet.

Population and Religion

During the first millennium AD, Nilotic and Bantu peoples spread into the region that is now Kenya, and the latter now represent three-quarters of Kenya's population. About 75% of Kenya's work force is involved in the agricultural sector, mainly as subsistence farmers. The official language is English and Kiswahili, while numerous other indigenous languages are used on a daily basis.

From the northeast, Arab traders and settlers have also influenced the culture and beliefs of Kenya. It is estimated that Muslim people represent approximately 10% of the Kenyan population, Christians 78% and indigenous and other beliefs some 10-12%. Notable cultures include the Swahili on the coast, the Maasai, and pastoralist communities in the north.

Economy and development

Kenya’s economic performance has been poor since the early 1980s. Average incomes have stopped growing, while at the same time public and private investments have declined.¹

Exports include tea, coffee, horticultural products, petroleum products and cement among others while the country’s central highlands and other fertile areas produce tea, coffee, sugarcane, horticultural products, corn, wheat and rice among other commodities.

Thirty-two percent of the population is estimated to be malnourished, with life expectancy at birth at 47.2 years. Adult literacy rate for people ages 15 and above is 73.6%.²