View source for Kenya

{{moresources|date=July 2011}}
{{Infobox country|native_name = ''Jamhuri ya Kenya''
|conventional_long_name = Republic of Kenya
|common_name = Kenya
|image_flag = Flag of Kenya.svg
|image_coat = Alternate Coat of arms of Kenya.svg
|national_motto = "[[Harambee]]"{{nbsp|2}}<small>([[Swahili language|Swahili]])<br />"Let us all pull together"</small>
|image_map = Kenya (orthographic projection).svg 
|national_anthem = ''[[Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu]]''<small><br />"O God of All Creation"</small>
[[File:National Anthem of Kenya.ogg]]
|official_languages = [[Swahili language|Swahili]], [[English language|English]]<ref>Constitution (2009) Art. 7[National, official and other languages] "(1) The national language of the Republic is Kiswahili. (2) The official languages of the Republic are Kiswahili and English. (3) The State shall–-–- (a) promote and protect the diversity of language of the people of Kenya; and (b) promote the development and use of indigenous languages, Kenyan Sign language, Braille and other communication formats and technologies accessible to persons with disabilities."</ref>
|demonym = [[Demographics of Kenya|Kenyan]]
|capital = [[Nairobi]]
|coordinates = {{Coord|1|16|S|36|48|E|type:city}}
|government_type = [[Presidential Republic]]
|leader_title1 = [[President of Kenya|President]]
|leader_name1 = [[William Ruto]]
|leader_title2 = [[Deputy President of Kenya|Deputy President]]
|leader_name2 = [[Rigathi Gachagua]]
|leader_title4 = [[Speaker of the National Assembly of Kenya|National Assembly Speaker]]
|leader_name4 = [[Moses Wetangula]]
|leader_title5 = [[Chief Justice of Kenya|Chief Justice]] 
|leader_name5 = [[Martha Koome]] 
|largest_city = [[Nairobi]]
|area_km2 = 580,367
|area_sq_mi = 224,080 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]-->
|area_rank = 47th
|percent_water = 2.3
|population_estimate      = 48,622,646<ref name=cia/>
|population_estimate_year = 2017
|population_estimate_rank = 29th
|population_census        = 38,610,097<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.knbs.or.ke/Census%20Results/KNBS%20Brochure.pdf |title=Official 2009 census results. |access-date=2011-01-31 |archive-date=2013-04-30 |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/6GFmOE4Vv?url=http://www.knbs.or.ke/Census%20Results/KNBS%20Brochure.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|population_census_year   = 2009
|population_density_km2   = 67.2
|population_density_sq_mi = 174.1 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]-->
|population_density_rank  = 140th
|GDP_PPP_year = 2011
|GDP_PPP_rank =
|GDP_PPP = $70.573 billion<ref name=imf2>{{cite web|url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=664&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=69&pr.y=14 |title=Kenya|publisher=International Monetary Fund|accessdate=6 November 2011}}</ref>
|GDP_PPP_per_capita = $1,725<ref name=imf2/>
|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank =
|GDP_nominal           = $35.787 billion<ref name=imf2/>
|GDP_nominal_year      = 2011
|GDP_nominal_rank      =
|GDP_nominal_per_capita    = $875<ref name=imf2/>
|GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank =
|HDI_year = 2014
|HDI = 0.548
|HDI_change = increase
|HDI_ref = <ref name="HDI">{{cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Tables.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2011|year=2011|publisher=United Nations|accessdate=2 November 2011}}</ref>
|HDI_rank = 143rd
|Gini                     = 42.5
|Gini_rank                = 48th
|Gini_ref                 = 
|Gini_year                = 2008
|sovereignty_type = [[Independence]]
|established_event1 = from the [[United Kingdom]]
|established_date1 = 12 December 1963
|established_event2 = Republic declared
|established_date2 = 12 December 1964
|currency = [[Kenyan shilling]]
|currency_code = KES
|time_zone = [[East Africa Time|EAT]]
|date_format = dd/mm/yy([[Anno Domini|AD]])
|utc_offset = +3
|time_zone_DST = ''not observed''
|utc_offset_DST = +3
|drives_on               = left
|cctld = [[.ke]]
|calling_code = [[+254]]
|footnotes = 1. According to [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ke.html cia.gov], estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex, than would otherwise be expected.<ref name=cia/>
}}
'''Kenya''' is a [[country]] in East [[Africa]], about halfway down, near the [[horn of Africa]]. It has the [[Indian Ocean]] to its east and [[Lake Victoria]] to west. Kenya borders the [[Jubaland]] part of [[Somalia]] (east), [[Ethiopia]] (north), [[South Sudan]] (north-west), [[Uganda]] (west), and [[Tanzania]] (south). Kenya is about the size of [[France]], and almost as large as [[Texas]] (U.S.).

The [[capital city]] of Kenya is [[Nairobi]], which is the 14th largest city in Africa (after Accra, [[Ghana]]).<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.listnbest.com/15-africas-largest-cities-top-metropolitan-areas/2/ |title=15 Africa&#039;s Largest Cities – Top Metropolitan Areas |access-date=2015-04-30 |archive-date=2015-05-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150503235716/http://www.listnbest.com/15-africas-largest-cities-top-metropolitan-areas/2/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Some cities on the seaside are [[Mombasa]] and [[Malindi]] on the Indian Ocean, Nyeri, Nanyuki, Naivasha, and Thika in the Kenyan Highlands, and Kisumu on [[Lake Victoria]].

The first humans may have lived near the lakes of Kenya along the [[Great Rift Valley]], which cuts Kenya from north to south.

Kenya's coast is [[tropical]] and gets very hot. Inland, it is drier and cooler where the mountains rise up. The highest mountain in Kenya is Mt. Kenya, at {{convert|5,199|m|ft|0}}. [[Mount Kilimanjaro]] crosses over the south border, with [[Tanzania]], but the highest part of Kilimanjaro is in Tanzania.

Kenya is home to many different [[indigenous peoples]] with their own [[cultures]], [[languages]], and [[History|histories]]. There are at least 44 living languages and 1 extinct language that is not spoken any more.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ethnologue.com/country/KE|title=Kenya}}</ref> English and [[Swahili language|Swahili]] are the official languages spoken in Kenya. Because of [[British Empire|colonialism]], school-going Kenyans are required to learn English, and it is used in schools and [[University|universities]].

Kenya was [[Colonization|colonized]] by the [[Britain|British]], who began taking land from indigenous peoples to build [[ranch]]es. They also [[Discrimination|discriminated]] against Kenyans in their own land.<ref>{{cite thesis|last=Cheruiyot|first=Ruth Catherine|date=1974|title=A Study of Racial Discrimination in Kenya During the Colonial Period|publisher=Oklahoma State University|degree=Master of Arts|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/215272779.pdf|doi=}}</ref> Kenyans who were against this formed a group called the Kenya Land and Freedom Army, or Mau Mau, that fought a war against Britain for [[independence]]. The British committed [[war crimes]] to stop the Mau Mau,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Walsh|first=Declan|date=2005-03-12|title=Revealing the shameful secrets of a dirty war|language=en|newspaper=The Irish Times|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/revealing-the-shameful-secrets-of-a-dirty-war-1.422745|access-date=2020-11-07|archive-url=|archive-date=}}</ref> but on December 12, 1963 they agreed to give Kenya independence.

For many years after independence, a single [[party]], the [[Kenya African National Union]] (KANU), ruled the country. General elections were held every 5 years. However, all candidates for election to office had to belong to the ruling party, KANU. The party used the police to [[Harassment|harass]] and [[torture]] [[socialists]] and [[communists]] in Kenya, and worked closely with Britain and the [[United States]] to keep them out of politics.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9783319509648|title=The Anatomy of Neo-Colonialism in Kenya: British Imperialism and Kenyatta, 1963–1978|last=Maloba|first=W. O.|date=2017|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-3-319-50964-8|series=African Histories and Modernities|language=en}}</ref>

[[William Ruto]] is currently the president of Kenya with [[Rigathi Gachagua ]] as his Deputy.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Said-Moorhouse, Cullinane and Duggan|first=Lauren,Susannah and Briana|date=31 October 2017|title=Uhuru Kenyatta wins disputed Kenya presidential rerun|work=CNN|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2017/10/30/africa/kenya-election-rerun-results/index.html}}</ref> The two leaders have had political issues after Kenyatta had a peace agreement often dubbed as a 'handshake' with Kenya's opposition leader [[Raila Odinga]] after the 2017 General Elections<ref>{{Cite news|last=Muriuki|first=Benjamin|date=27 November 2019|title=The 19-Hour Uhuru-Raila Meeting That Brokered The Handshake Deal|work=Citizen Digital|url=https://citizen.digital/news/the-19-hour-uhuru-raila-meeting-that-brokered-the-handshake-deal-305595/}}</ref> on whom should succeed Kenya's presidency in 2022 as the president supports Odinga.

== Education ==
All Kenyans of school-going age are required to attend Primary [[School]]. However, school fees and required uniforms often keep students away from school. The Kenyan school system consists of 8 years of primary school (Standard 1 through 8), 4 years of high school (Form 1 through 4) and 4 years of university, but plans are underway of changing the system to 2 years in pre-school, 6 years in primary school, 3 years in junior high school, 3 years in senior high school, and 3 years in university (2-6-6-3) in 2018. At the end of primary school, all students sit for a standardized exam called Kenya Certificate of Primary [[Education]] (KCPE). The grades attained in this exam determine which high school the student will attend. In Form 4 (the last year in high school), students sit for another exam called the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). The highest achieving students are granted admission into the 5 national [[University|universities]] (Nairobi, [[Jomo Kenyatta]] University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenyatta University, Egerton University and Moi University). Tertiary colleges, like Globovillee college, also feed the [[diploma]] graduates to universities.
[[File:Kenya-relief-map-towns.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.4|Map of '''Kenya''', showing major towns, lakes and mountains.]]

== Land and animals ==
Kenya is a country of grassland; it is not rich, but it is [[productive]] land especially in the highlands. This is a very dry grassland with poor soil.<ref name="lifepac">{{cite book | title= History and Geography|author= Theresa K. Buskey|date= March 2001|publisher= LIFEPAC. Alpha Omega Publications|location= |isbn= 978-1-58095-155-5|pages= 25 |url= }}</ref> Kenya also has very few mineral resources but their main mineral is soda ash. Three-fourths of the country is covered with plains. They are low in altitude along the coast, but get higher further inland, making a large plateau. The part east of [[Lake Turkana]] is the only true desert, but the rest can be very close to desert.

Savannas usually get between 4 and 16&nbsp;inches (100 to 400&nbsp;mm) of rain in a year. These lands, however, are called [[savanna]] because of the type of plants that live there and how they get their rain.<ref name="lifepac"/> Savannas have a wet and dry season. During the wet season it can rain hard for long periods of time, then not rain at all in the dry season. Savannas that have more rain often have many trees spaced out across their plains. These trees have deep roots or store water, like desert plants do, to live through the long dry seasons without rain. Even drier savannas will have only grass, and that too only in a few clumps. The dry land is very bad for crops, but it is a wonderful place for all kinds of wild animals to gather and range.<ref name="lifepac"/> That is why Kenya has a lot of parks where the animals are kept, and protected from all the hunters. People/tourists come from all over the world to go on photo [[safari]]s in Kenya's special [[wildlife]] parks. The people come to Kenya on safari to see animals such as the rhinoceros, giraffe, wildebeest, elephant, cheetah, antelope, and lion. These animals live on the savanna grasslands.

The wild herbivores move as they eat, and they never stay in one spot because there is not enough grass for all of them. People also usually raise cattle on the savanna. These animals are kept in one place and often eat up all the grass there.<ref name="lifepac"/>

== Government ==
Since the independence of Kenya in 1963, Kenya usually had a one-party government. In 1991, a section of the constitution was scrapped, which automatically made it a multi-party state. It is a member of the [[Great Britain|British]] Commonwealth.<ref name="lifepac"/> The people are, like the Congo, divided into many tribes that often fight. However, Kenya's government is trying to get the people to work together and has encouraged them to run businesses and [[factory|factories]]. Kenya is a developing country and is rapidly becoming modernized.<ref name="lifepac"/>

{{clear}}
===Counties===
[[File:Map_showing_Counties_underthe_new_kenyan_constitution..gif|260px|thumb|left|Counties of Kenya]]
In 2012, Kenya was divided into 47 counties. The head of each county is a governor, with each county further subdivided into 350 constituencies each represented in the National Assembly by Members of Parliament.

Before this, Kenya was divided into provinces.

==Related pages==
*[[Kenya at the Olympics]]
*[[Kenya national football team]]
*[[List of rivers of Kenya]]

== References ==
{{reflist|refs=
<ref name=cia>{{cite web |author=Central Intelligence Agency |authorlink=Central Intelligence Agency |publisher=[[The World Factbook]] |title=Kenya |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ke.html |year=2012 |accessdate=28 May 2013 |archive-date=31 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200831033452/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ke.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
}}

==Other websites==
{{commonscat}}
*[http://en.nkfu.com/kenya-photo-gallery/ Kenya Photo Gallery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612011115/http://en.nkfu.com/kenya-photo-gallery/ |date=2011-06-12 }}

{{Africa}}
{{Commonwealth nations}}

[[Category:Kenya| ]]
[[Category:1963 establishments in Africa]]
[[Category:Commonwealth member states]]