Good economic data, unclear prospects: Kenya, the safari paradise, engine of the region and potential oil-producing country, has been on the right track for years. The goal: to become an emerging market soon. But security problems, political strife and the threat of over-indebtedness dampen hopes. Subject areas Country overview & natural area Kenya combines a… Read More »
Infrastructure as a top priority Traffic & Transport Implementing a coherent economic policy in Kenya has long been difficult for reasons of political structure. In his presidential democracy, economic policy is, on the one hand, the president’s ‘top priority’; on the other hand, there are a number of ministries that deal with economic decisions, but… Read More »
Tusker, Kikoi, Kenpoly – industry for the region Magadi Soda – pipelines to the factory The industrial sector of Kenya is large in comparison to the African countries south of the Sahara, but it hardly plays a role internationally. The deposits of mineral resources are quite small. For natural soda alone, Kenya is one of… Read More »
Field of life: land as the opium of the masses Drying racks of the Baragwa Coffee Cooperation in Central. Largest customer The Agriculture is Kenya’s main industry, as most Kenyans live by it. As a major country in African continent according to nexticle, the Kenya is the world’s largest exporter of black tea, a producer… Read More »
Estimated GDP: approx. 95.5 billion US $ (World Bank, 2019) Per capita income (adjusted for purchasing power): US $ 1750 (World Bank, 2019) Human Development Rank (HDI): Rank 147 of 189 in 2018 (2016: 143, 2017: 142) Distribution of income (Gini coefficient): 40.8 (HDR 2018. 2017: 48.5) Proportion of population below the poverty line $… Read More »
An African lion – stable growth, high dynamism. Then came Corona With robust and continuous economic growth of 4 – 6 percent, Kenya was long considered the power center of the East African economic region, but the expectation for 2020 was reduced to 1.5 percent as a result of the corona pandemic. The World Bank… Read More »
In the cradle of humanity As a nation, Kenya celebrated the 50th anniversary of independence on December 12, 2013. But in most of the manuals, Kenya’s history begins with the archaeological finds of skeletons of early hominids. To this day, the country sees itself as a cradle of mankind, including in the National Museum of… Read More »
Elephants in Amboseli National Park A fisherman cleans the boat hull. South coast Flamingos in Nakuru National Park Kenya is located in the area of the Great East African Rift Valley and offers a variety of landscapes with correspondingly different vegetation. The land area can be divided into five different climate zones, from dry to… Read More »
Wild and regular recycling dump on the coast Recycling dump on the coast As a country located in eastern Africa according to philosophynearby, Kenya is a very arid country and at the same time an agricultural state whose population is growing by a million people every year. The population pressure exacerbates the land conflicts and… Read More »
Fresh green at the gates of Nairobi In Kenya, the degree of urbanization is around 30 percent, and the trend is rising here too. Some experts expect more than 50 percent of the urban population in 2030, but the majority of the almost 52 million residents still live in villages and scattered hamlets. The population… Read More »
Will climate change bring more rain? Despite the country’s location on the equator, the climate and vegetation are only tropical and humid on the coast and Lake Victoria. Agriculture is possible in a narrow strip in the hinterland of the coast and especially in the fertile highlands, with land conflicts particularly concentrated in the Rift… Read More »
Attacks in the border area of Somali militias continue, and early 2020 saw a slew of attacks that also came under fatal fire at a military base in Lamu County used by Kenya and the US. A particularly severe attack a year ago in the capital Nairobi made it clear that all of Kenya remains… Read More »
Independence Day: December 12, 1963 Head of state: President Uhuru Kenyatta Vice President: William Ruto Political system: Presidential democracy Democracy Status Index (BTI), 2020: Rank 79 (2018: 53): Severely defective democracy Corruption Index TI (CPI), 2019: Rank 137 (from 180, improved from rank 144) Ibrahim Index of African Governance 2020: Rank 14 (out of 54,… Read More »
The recent elections – although found correct by most of the observers sent in – were initially null and void by the Supreme Court, setting a precedent. For the first time in Africa, a state institution that was not of a military nature proved to be stronger than the ruler. Weaknesses in the system had… Read More »
The state was Moi State power out of control: Presidential power Kenya’s counties Since the end of British colonial rule in 1963, Kenya has been a republic with far-reaching powers of government and power for the president, directly elected by the people, who is also the commander in chief of the armed forces. The political… Read More »
Law and Uncertainty: Shocking Reports The legal system of Kenya is based on the British one. In the colonial era, however, ‘traditional’ legal systems were also used, especially in civil law. The legal sources of the so-called ‘Customary Law’ are based on African traditions (with great scope for interpretation) or in the Islamic communities on… Read More »
The so-called Madaraka Express, the new railway line between Mombasa and Nairobi, has been in operation since 2017, a billion-dollar project that is only exceeded by the joint infrastructure plans of Uganda, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya. These ambitious plans include a rail link from Juba to Lamu, a new oil pipeline, refineries, the construction… Read More »
2002: End of one-party rule Joseph Mbatia saw politics Daniel arap Moi 1978 – 2002 Emilio Mwai Kibaki 2002 – 2013 Uhuru Kenyatta belongs to the Kikuyu ethnic group. As the biggest victory celebrations since independence, as a second liberation and democratic awakening felt a majority of Kenyans and many foreign observers the change of… Read More »
Corruption – A way of life? Call to fight corruption in Nairobi’s “Corruption will now cease to be a way of life in Kenya”, Mwai Kibaki had announced when he took office as head of state at the turn of 2002. Fighting corruption was his first major campaign promise. But the topic remained in the… Read More »
The 2007 Elections: On the Brink of Civil War Raila Odinga’s multi-ethnic ODM alliance in 2007 In 2006, the former unity party KANU saw itself as a leading force in the opposition alliance ‘Orange Democratic Movement’ (ODM). For a time even a party dissolution in favor of the ODM was under discussion. In September 2007,… Read More »
The dynasty lives – the Kenyatta era 2 Aiming high Here is the Glasei Uhuru Kenyatta, son of state founder Jomo Kenyatta, is scheduled for the March 4th presidential election. In 2013 they won by the narrowest possible lead and won 50.07 percent of the votes, thus avoiding a runoff election. He was sworn in… Read More »
Raila on the left and Uhuru It is the people who put their stamp on the 41 political parties currently registered by the electoral authority in Kenya and not the other way around. The fate of Kenyatta’s venerable KANU, who has been a ruling party for 39 years and has now disappeared into insignificance, suggests… Read More »
Civil society: for peace, women’s and human rights The most influential civil society organizations still include the Catholic and Anglican Churches, although they are under pressure from free churches, Pentecostal churches and sects. With their strict no to the new constitution, which was adopted by the vast majority of voters in 2010, they have also… Read More »
Radioman – Sculpture in the RaMoMa Museum Kenya’s media are considered to be the best in the region, they are more widely distributed than in neighboring countries, and the media houses in Nairobi do not have to shy away from comparisons across Africa. The Standard and Daily Nation are the leading daily newspapers Even under… Read More »
Kenya in a regional and international context For decades Kenya appeared to its western partners as a haven of stability in a problematic environment. Whether genocide in Rwanda, civil war in South Sudan, state failure in Somalia, civil war in Ethiopia or Idi Amin’s and Obote’s dictatorships and civil war in Uganda – by comparison,… Read More »
Lighthouses in the drought zone “Kenya is prone to disasters”, stated the UN development program UNDP succinctly years ago, thus apologizing for the fact that East Africa’s powerhouse, which, unlike most of its neighbors, has never had to survive a civil war, is meeting some of the United Nations’ development goals despite considerable growth has… Read More »
Proportion of literate adults: 78.7% of those over 15 years of age (HDR 2018) Major religions: Christianity approx. 80%, Islam approx. 10%, indigenous people Urban population: 27.0% (HDR 2018) Life expectancy w / m: 68.7 / 64.0 HDR 2018 (2017: 69.7 / 64.9 years) Gender inequality: 0.545, ranked 134 of 162 (HDR 2018) Number of… Read More »
Luxury good education Director Edward Ndeda in the overcrowded exam class Kongowea Primary School, Mombasa As a major country in African continent according to petwithsupplies, Kenya has achieved a lot in the field of education. According to the World Bank, around 80 percent of Kenyans can read and write for over 15 years. A good… Read More »
Access to health care Education as HIV prevention – a painted school wall The figures from the World Health Organization show it: Kenya is a long way from providing comprehensive health care for the population. There are just 0.14 doctors for every thousand citizens (3.37 in Germany). What’s more, even if a doctor were available,… Read More »
Religion: With God under the baobab tree A little trust in God doesn’t hurt when you earn your money on such a device in Nairobi Spirituality and religion play a very important role for most Kenyans. The majority of Kenyans – 85 percent according to the 2019 census – are Christians of various denominations. About… Read More »