Marshall Islands (2004) | Kenya (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje | 7 provinces and 1 area*; Central, Coast, Eastern, Nairobi Area*, North Eastern, Nyanza, Rift Valley, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.6% (male 11,347; female 10,934)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 17,380; female 16,520) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 748; female 809) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.1% (male 7,826,804/female 7,720,456)
15-64 years: 55.2% (male 10,219,575/female 10,174,922) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 446,355/female 525,609) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens | tea, coffee, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruit, vegetables; dairy products, beef, pork, poultry, eggs |
Airports | 15 (2003 est.) | 225 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 15
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 11
914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 210
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 113 under 914 m: 85 (2007) |
Area | total: 181.3 sq km
land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik |
total: 582,650 sq km
land: 569,250 sq km water: 13,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than twice the size of Nevada |
Background | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the atolls between 1947 and 1962. The Marshall Islands hosts the US Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Reagan Missile Test Site, a key installation in the US missile defense network. | Founding president and liberation struggle icon Jomo KENYATTA led Kenya from independence in 1963 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 were viewed as having generally reflected the will of the Kenyan people. President MOI stepped down in December 2002 following fair and peaceful elections. Mwai KIBAKI, running as the candidate of the multiethnic, united opposition group, the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC), defeated KANU candidate Uhuru KENYATTA and assumed the presidency following a campaign centered on an anticorruption platform. KIBAKI's NARC coalition splintered in 2005 over the constitutional review process. Government defectors joined with KANU to form a new opposition coalition, the Orange Democratic Movement, which defeated the government's draft constitution in a popular referendum in November 2005. |
Birth rate | 33.88 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 38.94 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $42 million
expenditures: $40 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999) |
revenues: $4.691 billion
expenditures: $5.137 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Majuro | name: Nairobi
geographic coordinates: 1 17 S, 36 49 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; hot and humid; wet season from May to November; islands border typhoon belt | varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior |
Coastline | 370.4 km | 536 km |
Constitution | 1 May 1979 | 12 December 1963; amended as a republic 1964; reissued with amendments 1979, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1997, 2001; note - a new draft constitution was defeated by popular referendum in 2005 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Marshall Islands
conventional short form: Marshall Islands former: Marshall Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
conventional long form: Republic of Kenya
conventional short form: Kenya local long form: Republic of Kenya/Jamhuri y Kenya local short form: Kenya former: British East Africa |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 4.94 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.95 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $86.5 million (FY99/00 est.) | $6.931 billion (2006 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Greta N. MORRIS
embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael RANNEBERGER
embassy: US Embassy, United Nations Avenue, 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Banny DE BRUM
chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
chief of mission: Ambassador Peter Rateng Oginga OGEGO
chancery: 2249 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-6101 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3829 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles |
Disputes - international | claims US territory of Wake Island | Kenya served as an important mediator in brokering Sudan's north-south separation in February 2005; Kenya provides shelter to almost 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 works hard to prevent the clan and militia fighting in Somalia from spreading across the border, which has long been open to nomadic pastoralists; the boundary that separates Kenya's and Sudan's sovereignty is unclear in the "Ilemi Triangle," which Kenya has administered since colonial times |
Economic aid - recipient | more than $1 billion from the US, 1986-2002 | $768.3 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production is primarily subsistence and is concentrated on small farms; the most important commercial crops are coconuts and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, tuna processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US has provided more than $1 billion in aid since 1986. Negotiations have continued for an extended agreement. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties, and less income from the renewal of fishing vessel licenses have held GDP growth to an average of 1% over the past decade. | 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 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. Since then, however, the KIBAKI government has been rocked by high-level graft scandals. The World Bank suspended aid for most of 2006, and the IMF has delayed loans pending further action by the government on corruption. The scandals have not seemed to affect growth, with GDP growing more than 5% in 2006. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 4.464 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | - | 28 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | - | 5.502 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Kenya 5,199 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 |
Ethnic groups | Micronesian | Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is the legal tender | Kenyan shillings per US dollar - 72.101 (2006), 75.554 (2005), 79.174 (2004), 75.936 (2003), 78.749 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 5 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 5 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 17 November 2003 (next to be held NA November 2007) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
chief of state: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002); 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); Vice President Moody AWORI (since 25 September 2003) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second 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 in December 2007); vice president appointed by the president election results: President Mwai KIBAKI elected; percent of vote - Mwai KIBAKI 63%, Uhuru KENYATTA 30% |
Exports | $9 million f.o.b. (2000) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | copra cake, coconut oil, handicrafts, fish | tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, cement |
Exports - partners | US, Japan, Australia, China (2000) | Uganda 15.9%, UK 10.3%, US 8.2%, Netherlands 7.9%, Tanzania 7.7%, Pakistan 4.9% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $115 million (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 14%
industry: 16% services: 70% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 24%
industry: 16.7% services: 59.2% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,600 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2001 est.) | 6.1% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 9 00 N, 168 00 E | 1 00 N, 38 00 E |
Geography - note | two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range | 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 |
Highways | total: NA km
paved: 64.5 km unpaved: NA km note: paved roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks (2002) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 37.2% (2000) |
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 |
Imports | $54 million f.o.b. (2000) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco | machinery and transportation equipment, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics |
Imports - partners | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Singapore, Fiji, China, Philippines (2000) | UAE 11.8%, India 8.8%, China 8.3%, Saudi Arabia 8.3%, US 7%, South Africa 6.4%, UK 5.3%, Japan 4.7% (2006) |
Independence | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | 12 December 1963 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 6.3% (2006 est.) |
Industries | copra, fish, tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls | small-scale consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, clothing, soap, cigarettes, flour), agricultural products, horticulture, oil refining; aluminum, steel, lead; cement, commercial ship repair, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 30.5 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 34.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 26.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 57.44 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 60.44 deaths/1,000 live births female: 54.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2001 est.) | 14.5% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Interpol, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, EAC, EADB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km | 1,030 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | Court of Appeal (chief justice is appointed by the president); High Court |
Labor force | 28,700 (1996 est.) | 1.963 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 21.4%, industry 20.9%, services 57.7% | agriculture: 75%
industry and services: 25% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 3,477 km
border countries: Ethiopia 861 km, Somalia 682 km, Sudan 232 km, Tanzania 769 km, Uganda 933 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.67%
permanent crops: 38.89% other: 44.44% (2001) |
arable land: 8.01%
permanent crops: 0.97% other: 91.02% (2005) |
Languages | English (widely spoken as a second language, both English and Marshallese are official languages), two major Marshallese dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family, Japanese | English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages |
Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | 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 |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 November 2003 (next to be held not later than November 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs is a 12-member body that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
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 in December 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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.7 years
male: 67.77 years female: 71.73 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 55.31 years
male: 55.24 years female: 55.37 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.7% male: 93.6% female: 93.7% (1999) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.1% male: 90.6% female: 79.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia | Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 420 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 16,954,092 GRT/28,176,762 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 81, cargo 25, chemical tanker 41, combination bulk 4, combination ore/oil 7, container 77, liquefied gas 9, multi-functional large load carrier 5, passenger 6, petroleum tanker 149, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 7, vehicle carrier 4 foreign-owned: Australia 2, Chile 3, Croatia 2, Cyprus 10, Denmark 2, Germany 119, Greece 82, Hong Kong 12, India 2, Japan 16, Monaco 18, Netherlands 6, New Zealand 1, Norway 5, Poland 11, Singapore 1, Slovenia 1, Switzerland 4, Thailand 2, Turkey 8, United Kingdom 10, United States 92 registered in other countries: 50 (2004 est.) |
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 3,737 GRT/5,558 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1 registered in other countries: 5 (Bahamas 1, Comoros 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 2, Tuvalu 1, unknown 1) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Marshall Islands Police | Kenyan Army, Kenyan Navy, Kenyan Air Force (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 2.8% (2006) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) | Independence Day, 12 December (1963) |
Nationality | noun: Marshallese (singular and plural)
adjective: Marshallese |
noun: Kenyan(s)
adjective: Kenyan |
Natural hazards | infrequent typhoons | recurring drought; flooding during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | coconut products, marine products, deep seabed minerals | limestone, soda ash, salt, gemstones, fluorspar, zinc, diatomite, gypsum, wildlife, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -6.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | refined products 894 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Kabua Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] | Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-Kenya or FORD-Kenya [Musikari KOMBO or Soita SHITANDA, disputed]; Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-People or FORD-People [Simeon NYACHAE]; Kenya African National Union or KANU [Nicholas BIWOTT or Uhuru KENYATTA, disputed]; National Rainbow Coalition-Kenya or NARC-K [Mwai KIBAKI, unofficially, since the break-up of KIBAKI's original coalition]; Orange Democratic Movement-Kenya or ODM-Kenya [Raila ODINGA, unofficially] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | human rights groups; labor unions; Muslim organizations; National Convention Executive Council or NCEC, a proreform coalition of political parties and nongovernment organizations [Ndung'u WAINANA]; 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] |
Population | 57,738 (July 2004 est.) | 36,913,721
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 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 50% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.29% (2004 est.) | 2.799% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Majuro | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 1, shortwave 0
note: additionally, the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Services (Central Pacific Network) operate one FM and one AM station on Kwajalein (2002) |
AM 24, FM 18, shortwave 6 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 2,778 km
narrow gauge: 2,778 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Christian (mostly Protestant) | Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, Muslim 10%, indigenous beliefs 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 |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.014 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.004 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.849 male(s)/female total population: 1.004 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: digital switching equipment; modern services include telex, cellular, internet, international calling, caller ID, and leased data circuits
domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: country code - 692; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein (2001) |
general assessment: inadequate; fixed-line telephone system is small and inefficient; trunks are primarily microwave radio relay; business data commonly transferred by a very small aperture terminal (VSAT) system
domestic: no recent growth in fixed-line infrastructure and the sole provider, Telkom Kenya, is slated for privatization; multiple providers in the mobile-cellular segment of the market fostering a boom in mobile-cellular telephone usage international: country code - 254; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,500 (2003) | 293,400 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 600 (2002) | 6.485 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (both are US military stations) (2002) | 8 (2001) |
Terrain | low coral limestone and sand islands | low plains rise to central highlands bisected by Great Rift Valley; fertile plateau in west |
Total fertility rate | 4.02 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 4.82 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30.9% (1999 est.) | 40% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | part of Lake Victoria system is within boundaries of Kenya (2006) |