A country of East Africa, Kenya is a land of natural beauty. Its varied landscape includes towering mountains, open grasslands, desert scrublands, and sandy beaches. This land supports rare and diverse wildlife that draws many visitors to the country. Kenya is also known as the home of some of the earliest human ancestors. The capital is Nairobi. GeographyKenya lies along the equator on Africa's east coast. It covers an area of 582,646 square kilometers (224,961 square miles). Kenya is bounded on the north by Sudan and Ethiopia, on the west by Uganda and Lake Victoria, on the south by Tanzania, and on the east by Somalia and the Indian Ocean. Kenya has five geographic regions. Northern Kenya is mostly dry, with some areas of desert. On the edge of this region is Lake Turkana (or Lake Rudolf). The western part of Kenya consists of highlands divided by the Great Rift Valley. In the eastern part of this region is Mount Kenya, Kenya's highest peak at 17,058 feet (5,199 meters). The Lake Victoria basin extends from the lakeshore in the southwest to the mountains. Fertile, rolling grassland covers much of this area. The vast region east of the mountains is a mostly dry plateau that slopes gently to the Indian Ocean. Along the coast is a narrow strip of land that separates the dry interior from the sea. Kenya's most important river, the Tana, flows from the highlands to the Indian Ocean. Most of the country's other rivers are short and shallow. They sometimes dry up when rain is scarce. Kenya has two wet seasons and two dry seasons. Rainfall is most plentiful in the highlands and along the coast. The north is Kenya's driest area. Temperatures are generally warmer in the north and cooler in the highlands. Kenya occasionally suffers from drought. Plants and animalsThe highlands have patches of evergreen forest separated by wide expanses of bamboo grass. East and west of the highlands, the vegetation consists of low trees that are scattered through tall grass. The dry landscape of the north is dotted with thorn bushes and baobob trees. The coastal region is mainly grassland with some areas of forest. - Herd of male impalas (Aepyceros melampus) in Nairobi National Park, Kenya
Kenya is home to some of the rarest wildlife in the world. The country's animals include elephants, rhinoceroses, lions, leopards, giraffes, wildebeests, zebras, impalas, hyenas, hippos, and crocodiles. This wildlife is protected at many national parks and game reserves. People and cultureThe population of Kenya includes many different ethnic groups with unique languages and cultures. The largest groups are the Kikuyu, Luhya, Luo, Kalenjin, and Kamba. The official languages are English and Swahili. Most people speak at least one of these as well as their own local language. The most common religion is Christianity, though African traditional religions are also widespread. Muslims and Hindus form small minorities. The majority of Kenyans live in rural settlements, but cities have grown rapidly since the early 1970s. In the late 1990s about one third of the population lived in cities. The largest city is Nairobi, the capital, followed by Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, and Eldoret. Economy - Workers dry coffee in Nyeri, Kenya. Coffee is an important export crop for Kenya.
The economy of Kenya is based largely on agriculture, though most of the land is unsuitable for farming. The majority of Kenyans are farmers who produce crops for their own needs. The main food crop is corn (maize). The leading export crops are coffee and tea. Manufacturing in Kenya is based on the processing of agricultural products. Other industries produce beverages, textiles, paper, cement, leather, and assembled vehicles. Tourism is a well-established part of Kenya's economy. Most tourists visit Kenya to view wildlife or to visit its beautiful beaches. HistoryThe earliest recorded history of Kenya concerns the coastline. For centuries people along the coast traded with southern Arabia across the Indian Ocean. Europeans arrived in the area in the 19th century. By the 1890s the British had taken control of Kenya. They officially made it a British colony in 1920. The British administration encouraged British and South African white people to settle in Kenya. To promote this settlement, the British reserved much of the colony's land for whites. This angered the native people of Kenya. In 1952 they began a rebellion against the colonial government. A group called the Mau Mau led the struggle. The Mau Mau rebellion, as the uprising was called, was brought to an end in 1960. Kenya became an independent nation in 1963. The first president of Kenya was Jomo Kenyatta. He had been a leader of the fight against British rule and was imprisoned by the British from 1953 to 1961. Under Kenyatta's leadership, Kenya enjoyed political stability and economic growth. After Kenyatta's death in 1978, Daniel arap Moi became president. Kenya officially became a one-party state in 1982. Throughout the 1980s the country experienced economic problems while Moi's government was widely accused of corruption. In 1992 Moi responded to calls for reform by allowing multiparty elections. Although charges of corruption continued, Moi was reelected in 1992 and 1997. Population (2001 estimate), 30,766,000. |