Kenya (2005) | Turks and Caicos Islands (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 7 provinces and 1 area*; Central, Coast, Eastern, Nairobi Area*, North Eastern, Nyanza, Rift Valley, Western | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.5% (male 7,252,075/female 7,124,034)
15-64 years: 55.2% (male 9,378,428/female 9,295,471) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 356,116/female 423,466) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 32.5% (male 3,396/female 3,277)
15-64 years: 63.8% (male 6,900/female 6,220) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 342/female 421) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | tea, coffee, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruit, vegetables; dairy products, beef, pork, poultry, eggs | corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), citrus fruits; fish |
Airports | 221 (2004 est.) | 8 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 15
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 206
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 110 under 914 m: 84 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 582,650 sq km
land: 569,250 sq km water: 13,400 sq km |
total: 430 sq km
land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Nevada | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Founding president and liberation struggle icon Jomo KENYATTA led Kenya from independence until his death in 1978, when President Daniel Toroitich arap MOI took power in a constitutional succession. The country was a de facto one-party state from 1969 until 1982 when the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU) made itself the sole legal party in Kenya. MOI acceded to internal and external pressure for political liberalization in late 1991. The ethnically fractured opposition failed to dislodge KANU from power in elections in 1992 and 1997, which were marred by violence and fraud, but are viewed as having generally reflected the will of the Kenyan people. President MOI stepped down in December of 2002 following fair and peaceful elections. Mwai KIBAKI, running as the candidate of the multiethnic, united opposition group, the National Rainbow Coalition, defeated KANU candidate Uhuru KENYATTA and assumed the presidency following a campaign centered on an anticorruption platform. | The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands remain a British overseas territory. |
Birth rate | 40.13 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 22.23 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.89 billion
expenditures: $3.443 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $47 million
expenditures: $33.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997-98 est.) |
Capital | Nairobi | Grand Turk |
Climate | varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior | tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry |
Coastline | 536 km | 389 km |
Constitution | 12 December 1963; amended as a republic 1964; reissued with amendments 1979, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1997, and 2001 | introduced 30 August 1976; suspended in 1986; restored and revised 5 March 1988 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Kenya
conventional short form: Kenya former: British East Africa |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turks and Caicos Islands |
Death rate | 14.65 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.28 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $6.792 billion (2004 est.) | NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador William M. BELLAMY
embassy: US Embassy, United Nations Ave., Gigiri; P. O. Box 606 Village Market Nairobi mailing address: Box 21A, Unit 64100, APO AE 09831 telephone: [254] (20) 537-800 FAX: [254] (20) 537-810 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Leonard NGAITHE
chancery: 2249 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-6101 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3829 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | Kenya served as an important mediator in brokering Sudan's north-south separation in February 2005; Kenya provides shelter to approximately a quarter of a million refugees including Ugandans who flee across the border periodically to seek protection from Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels; Kenya's administrative limits extend beyond the treaty border into the Sudan, creating the Ilemi Triangle | have received Haitians fleeing economic and civil disorder |
Economic aid - recipient | $453 million (1997) | $4.1 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | The regional hub for trade and finance in East Africa, Kenya has been hampered by corruption and by reliance upon several primary goods whose prices have remained low. In 1997, the IMF suspended Kenya's Enhanced Structural Adjustment Program due to the government's failure to maintain reforms and curb corruption. A severe drought from 1999 to 2000 compounded Kenya's problems, causing water and energy rationing and reducing agricultural output. As a result, GDP contracted by 0.2% in 2000. The IMF, which had resumed loans in 2000 to help Kenya through the drought, again halted lending in 2001 when the government failed to institute several anticorruption measures. Despite the return of strong rains in 2001, weak commodity prices, endemic corruption, and low investment limited Kenya's economic growth to 1.2%. Growth lagged at 1.1% in 2002 because of erratic rains, low investor confidence, meager donor support, and political infighting up to the elections. In the key 27 December 2002 elections, Daniel Arap MOI's 24-year-old reign ended, and a new opposition government took on the formidable economic problems facing the nation. In 2003, progress was made in rooting out corruption and encouraging donor support, with GDP growth edging up to 1.7%. GDP grew a moderate 2.2% in 2004. | The Turks and Caicos economy is based on tourism, fishing, and offshore financial services. Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported. The US is the leading source of tourists, accounting for more than half of the annual 93,000 visitors in the late 1990s. Major sources of government revenue also include fees from offshore financial activities and customs receipts. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.337 billion kWh (2002) | 4.65 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 175 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 4.475 billion kWh (2002) | 5 million kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Kenya 5,199 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Hills 49 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from urban and industrial wastes; degradation of water quality from increased use of pesticides and fertilizers; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; poaching | limited natural fresh water resources, private cisterns collect rainwater |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1% | black 90%, mixed, European, or North American 10% |
Exchange rates | Kenyan shillings per US dollar - 79.174 (2004), 75.936 (2003), 78.749 (2002), 78.563 (2001), 76.176 (2000) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002) and Vice President Moody AWORI (since 25 September 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002) and Vice President Moody AWORI (since 25 September 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; in addition to receiving the largest number of votes in absolute terms, the presidential candidate must also win 25% or more of the vote in at least five of Kenya's seven provinces and one area to avoid a runoff; election last held 27 December 2002 (next to be held December 2007); vice president appointed by the president election results: President Mwai KIBAKI elected; percent of vote - Mwai KIBAKI 63%, Uhuru KENYATTA 30% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1953), represented by Governor Richard TAUWHARE (since 11 July 2005)
head of government: Chief Minister Michael Eugene MISICK (since 15 August 2003) cabinet: Executive Council consists of three ex officio members and five appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is appointed chief minister by the governor |
Exports | NA | NA |
Exports - commodities | tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, cement | lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells |
Exports - partners | Uganda 13.3%, UK 11.4%, US 10.6%, Netherlands 8.2%, Egypt 4.9%, Tanzania 4.5%, Pakistan 4.3% (2004) | US, UK |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green; the red band is edged in white; a large warrior's shield covering crossed spears is superimposed at the center | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 19.3%
industry: 18.5% services: 62.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,500 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.2% (2004 est.) | 4.9% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 00 N, 38 00 E | 21 45 N, 71 35 W |
Geography - note | the Kenyan Highlands comprise one of the most successful agricultural production regions in Africa; glaciers are found on Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest peak; unique physiography supports abundant and varied wildlife of scientific and economic value | about 40 islands (eight inhabited) |
Highways | total: 63,942 km
paved: 7,737 km unpaved: 56,205 km (2000) |
total: 121 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 97 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 37.2% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | widespread harvesting of small plots of marijuana; transit country for South Asian heroin destined for Europe and North America; Indian methaqualone also transits on way to South Africa; significant potential for money-laundering activity given the country's status as a regional financial center; massive corruption, and relatively high levels of narcotics-associated activities | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | NA | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transportation equipment, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics | food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction materials |
Imports - partners | UAE 12.6%, Saudi Arabia 9.1%, South Africa 8.8%, US 7.7%, India 7.2%, UK 6.7%, China 6.4%, Japan 5% (2004) | US, UK |
Independence | 12 December 1963 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.6% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | small-scale consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, soap, cigarettes, flour), agricultural products; oil refining, aluminum, steel, lead, cement; commercial ship repair, tourism | tourism, offshore financial services |
Infant mortality rate | total: 61.47 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 64.26 deaths/1,000 live births female: 58.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 15.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.11 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9% (2004 est.) | 4% (1995) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, EADB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), UPU |
Irrigated land | 670 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal (chief justice is appointed by the president); High Court | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 11.4 million (2004 est.) | 4,848 (1990 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 75% (2003 est.) | about 33% in government and 20% in agriculture and fishing; significant numbers in tourism, financial, and other services |
Land boundaries | total: 3,477 km
border countries: Ethiopia 861 km, Somalia 682 km, Sudan 232 km, Tanzania 769 km, Uganda 933 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 8.08%
permanent crops: 0.98% other: 90.94% (2001) |
arable land: 2.33%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.67% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages | English (official) |
Legal system | based on Kenyan statutory law, Kenyan and English common law, tribal law, and Islamic law; judicial review in High Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations; constitutional amendment of 1982 making Kenya a de jure one-party state repealed in 1991 | based on laws of England and Wales, with a few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Bunge (224 seats; 210 members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms, 12 so-called "nominated" members who are appointed by the president but selected by the parties in proportion to their parliamentary vote totals, 2 ex-officio members)
elections: last held 27 December 2002 (next to be held by early 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NARC 125, KANU 64, FORD-P 14, other 7; ex-officio 2; seats appointed by the president - NARC 7, KANU 4, FORD-P 1 |
unicameral Legislative Council (19 seats of which 13 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 24 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PDM 53.8%, PNP 46.2%; seats by party - PDM 7, PNP 6; note - in by-elections held 7 August 2003, the PNP gained two seats for a majority of 8 seats; PDM now has 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 47.99 years
male: 48.87 years female: 47.09 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 74.51 years
male: 72.28 years female: 76.84 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.1% male: 90.6% female: 79.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania | Caribbean, two island groups in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of The Bahamas, north of Haiti |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,049 GRT/7,082 DWT
by type: cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1 registered in other countries: 6 (2005) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $177.1 million (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.3% (2004) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 December (1963) | Constitution Day, 30 August (1976) |
Nationality | noun: Kenyan(s)
adjective: Kenyan |
noun: none
adjective: none |
Natural hazards | recurring drought; flooding during rainy seasons | frequent hurricanes |
Natural resources | limestone, soda ash, salt, gemstones, fluorspar, zinc, diatomite, gypsum, wildlife, hydropower | spiny lobster, conch |
Net migration rate | 0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: according to UNHCR, by the end of 2001 Kenya was host to 220,000 refugees from neighboring countries, including: Somalia 145,000 and Sudan 68,000 (2005 est.) |
11.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
People - note | - | destination and transit point for illegal Haitian immigrants bound for the Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, and US |
Pipelines | refined products 752 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-People or FORD-People [Kimaniwa NYOIKE, chairman]; Kenya African National Union or KANU [Uhuru KENYATTA]; National Rainbow Coalition or NARC [Mwai KIBAKI] - the governing party | People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Derek H. TAYLOR]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Michael Eugene MISICK] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | human rights groups; labor unions; Muslim organizations; National Convention Executive Council or NCEC, a proreform coalition of political parties and nongovernment organizations [Kivutha KIBWANA]; Protestant National Council of Churches of Kenya or NCCK [Mutava MUSYIMI]; Roman Catholic and other Christian churches; Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims or SUPKEM [Shaykh Abdul Gafur al-BUSAIDY] | NA |
Population | 33,829,590
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess 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 (July 2005 est.) |
20,556 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.56% (2005 est.) | 2.9% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mombasa | Grand Turk, Providenciales |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 24, FM 18, shortwave 6 (2001) | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Railways | total: 2,778 km
narrow gauge: 2,778 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
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Religions | Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, indigenous beliefs 10%, Muslim 10%, other 2%
note: a large majority of Kenyans are Christian, but estimates for the percentage of the population that adheres to Islam or indigenous beliefs vary widely |
Baptist 40%, Methodist 16%, Anglican 18%, Church of God 12%, other 14% (1990) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: unreliable; little attempt to modernize except for service to business
domestic: trunks are primarily microwave radio relay; business data commonly transferred by a very small aperture terminal (VSAT) system international: country code - 254; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat |
general assessment: fully digital system with international direct dialing
domestic: full range of services available international: country code - 1-649; 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 328,400 (2003) | 5,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,590,800 (2003) | 1,700 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 8 (2002) | 0 (broadcasts from The Bahamas are received; 2 cable television networks) (2004) |
Terrain | low plains rise to central highlands bisected by Great Rift Valley; fertile plateau in west | low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps |
Total fertility rate | 4.96 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.08 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 40% (2001 est.) | 10% (1997 est.) |
Waterways | part of Lake Victoria system is within boundaries of Kenya (2004) | - |