Africa A to Z: Continental and Country Profiles: Third Edition

Kenya

COUNTRY PROFILES A-Z Africa Institute of South Africa | Africa A-Z: Continental and Country Profiles 221 Kenya Orientation Kenya has a population of over 30 million and is almost equal in size to Botswana or Madagascar. The northern parts of the country border on Ethiopia and the remainder forms part of the Great Rift Valley, with escarpments and highlands on both sides of the valley. The highlands enjoy high rainfall and a temperate climate despite the fact that the country lies on both sides of the equator. The low-lying areas are hot and humid all year round, especially along the coast. The northern and eastern parts are semi-arid wasteland. Nairobi is the capital city, largest urban area and the economic heart of the country as well as of the East African region and has a population of some 1.5 million people. Mombasa, with some 500 000 people, is the second largest city and principal port. People The mother tongues of most Kenyans are Bantu languages, amongst which Gikuyu is the language of the largest single ethnic group (Kikuyu), who account for one-fifth of the total population. Other large Bantuspeaking groups are the Luhya and Kamba. A quarter of the population speaks Nilotic languages; these groups consist of the Luo, Masai, Samburu, Turkana and the Kalenjin. The Kalenjin cluster is further divided into various sub-groups. The Kalenjin and the Luo are the largest Nilotic-speaking groups. Up north are the Cushitic groups such as the Oromiya and the Kenyan Somalis and further south in Mombasa there are Kiswahili-speaking Arabs. Kiswahili is the lingua franca in East Africa and an official language besides English. About one-third of the population is urbanised, and about two-thirds of the population profess Christianity. Economy Despite its physical size, Kenya has a lack of agricultural land; the bulk of the large rural population is concentrated in the country’s southwestern corner (the Kenyan highlands and the shorelands of Lake Victoria) that accounts for 13% of the total land area. Agriculture (farming and livestock) is the most important economic activity in Kenya, accounting for about a quarter of the GDP. Almost half the agricultural output is for subsistence. Cash crops such as tea, coffee and horticultural products account for 52% of the merchandise export revenue; tea is by far the largest export revenue earner, with Kenya the leading supplier of black tea. COUNTRY PROFILES A-Z 222 Africa A-Z: Continental and Country Profiles | Africa Institute of South Africa The mining and quarrying industry is relatively limited, accounting for a fraction of GDP, most of which comes from soda ash in Lake Magadi. Kenya also boasts titanium, zircon, fluorspar, salt, limestone and precious stones, but these have not been fully exploited. Manufacturing focuses on a number of sub-sectors with strong emphasis on consumer goods like tobacco, beverages, textiles, food products, petroleum products, paper products and sugar. Total wage employment in this sector now stands at 220 000 people. Tourism is the second largest exchange earner after agriculture, contributing 20% to the GDP and is also a major source of employment. History In Stone Age times fishing communities lived around the Rift Valley lakes, while the hunter-gatherer groups (San) roamed the dense forest areas of Kenya. By the beginning of the 15th century two groups had settled in what is now known as Kenya; they were the Cushitic livestock herders, in the central highlands, and pastoralist/ cultivators of the same origin in the Kenya COUNTRY PROFILES A-Z Africa Institute of South Africa | Africa A-Z: Continental and Country Profiles 223 western highlands. The Bantu migration into what is now Kenya, from about 3 000 years ago, saw the eventual settling of the Meru and Kikuyu groups on the foothills of Mount Kenya. The Luo and other Nilotic groups settled around the eastern shores of Lake Victoria, pushing the Bantuspeaking Luhya and Kisii into the adjacent (western) highlands. The Kenyan coast, being part of the early Indian Ocean trade network, became part of the Muslim world. The early settlements by Arab merchants began from the 10th century and as a result ports and trading stations emerged, Mombasa eventually became the major trading port and business centre. The British East Africa Protectorate came into being in 1895, though Kenya had been a British protectorate as early as 1885. White settlements began in Kenya...