|RConstitution:|N Republic within the Commonwealth of Nations.
|RNational holiday:|N Jamhuri Day, December 12.
|RNature and climate:|N Mainly highland plateaus sloping towards the Indian Ocean in east. Elevation in northeast up til 3000 m.a.s.l. There are several extinct volcanoes. Mount Kenya reaches 5 200 m.a.s.l. and Mount Elgon 4 321 m.a.s.l.
Gregory Rift runs through Kenya from south to north.
Mangrove by the coast of the Indian Ocean and mainly grass savannahs in the rest of the country.Many big animals live in Kenya. Lions, leopards, gepards, hippopatomas, antilopes, buffaloes, rhinocerus, zebroes, elephants and many others are common and there are vast national parks.
Average temperature in the lowlands between 25 and 30°C throughout the year. Much cooler in the mountains.
Percipitation between 800 and 1500 mm by the coast and in the mountains, in the vast plains only about 200 mm.
|RPeople:|N 20 different ethnic groups. The biggest are Kikuyu 21%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 11% and Kamba 11%.
|REconomy:|N 18% of the labour force is occupied in industry and commerce, 17% in agriculture and 13% in services. Most people is engaged in agriculture and animal farming.
Most farming is self subsistence but there are also farming for sale. Most important crops are corn and cereals for domestic use and coffee, tea, cotton, and sisal for export. Kenya is one of the world's largest exporters of tea and coffee.
Kenya have several minerals. The most important are gold, limestone, diatomite, salt, barytes, magnesite, felspar, sapphires, fluospar and garnets.
Kenya is the most industrialized country in eastern Africa. Industry accounts for about 20% of GDP and industry has been aimed at export in the last decades.
There are several car assembly plants, oilrefineries, cementfactories and factories for paper and paperpulp. About 50% of the industry have foreign owners.
Tourism is an important source of income.
|RHistory:|N In the fourth century BC Kenya played an important role in the trade between East Africa and the Red Sea and in the eight century AD Arab and Persian trade posts were established in Kenya. At this time the language Swahili was developed as a mixture between Bantu and Arabic.
In 1498 Portuguese explorer reached the coast and Portugal controlled the coast until 1729 when it came under the sultans of Oman.
In the late 19th century British adventurers explored Kenya and in 1890 the British East Africa Company made the coastal region a protectorate. In 1895 the interior was added to the protectorate. After this British settlers established farms, mission stations and towns and in 1920 Kenya became a British colony.
There was a great local discontent with the colonial regime from the start and in 1952 there was a bloody uprising, the Mau-Mau rebellion, that was not fully defeated until 1959.
Kenya became an independent republic within the Commonwealth in 1963. In 1969 the only opposition party was prohibited since their leaders had been accused of being involved in a political murder.
Since the mid 1970:ies opposition have accused the ruling party of corruption and oppression and in 1992 there were tribal clashes that cost thousands of people their lives.
In 1993 there were free general elections for the first time since the early 1960:ies, but one day after the new parliament was opened it was closed by the president.
