Country Profile

Kenya has a population of approximately 44m, with a growth rate of 2.11% in 2014, and more than one-third of the populace – 42.9% – is classified as under 14 years of age. While services are the largest GDP contributor, accounting for over 50% of economic activity, the country also has an extremely developed agricultural sector. Although it has been through its fair share of ups and downs, including outbreaks of violent unrest and high levels of poverty and unemployment, Kenya has enjoyed a spell of encouraging developments in recent years, including the discovery of new reserves of oil and water, and the passage of a new constitution. Devolution represents the most significant reform to Kenya’s political institutions since independence in 1963, although it has been a constant construct of national political dialogue over the past half-century.

This chapter contains interviews with President Uhuru Kenyatta; Richard Sezibera, Secretary-General, East African Community (EAC); Nicholas Westcott, Managing Director for Africa, European External Action Service; and Mark Simmonds, Former Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs, British Foreign & Commonwealth Office; as well as a viewpoint from Gao Hucheng, Chinese Minister of Commerce.