Kenya Essay Research Paper Kenya is a

Kenya Essay, Research Paper

Kenya is a republic in Africa and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It is

bordered on the north by Sudan and Ethiopia, on the east by Somalia and the Indian

Ocean, on the south by Tanzania, and on the west by Lake Victoria and Uganda. Kenya

has an area of 224,960 miles. Nairobi is its capital and largest city.

Kenya falls into several well-defined topographical zones extending from the

Indian Ocean coast upward to lofty mountain ranges that reach elevations of more than

10,000 ft above sea level. From a low coastal strip the terrain rises gradually to a broad,

arid plateau that covers the largest portion of the country. The region west of the plateau

contains great volcanic mountain chains, of which the principal peak is Mount Kenya.

The southern and southeastern portions of the country are heavily forested, and in the

west, the immense depression of the Great Rift Valley is demarcated by a succession of

steep cliffs. The chief rivers of Kenya are the Tana and Galana. Besides a small portion of

Lake Victoria, Kenya contains almost all of Lake Turkana.

Kenya is divided into two equal parts by the equator. The region north of the

equator is hot and receives comparatively little rain. The southern region falls into three

meteorological zones: the coast is humid, the highlands are relatively temperate, and the

Lake Victoria region is tropical. The main resource of Kenya is its land, of which about

11 percent is suitable for agriculture. About 1/3 of that total is used to grow crops; the

remainder is used mainly for grazing. The northern 2/3s of Kenya is mostly desert or

semidesert.

The great majority of Kenya s population is black African. The country has also

small numbers of Asians, Europeans, and Arabs. The black Africans are divided into

more than 30 ethnic groups belonging to four linguistic families-Bantu, Nilotic,

Paranilotic, and Cushitic. The largest ethnic groups are the Bantu-speaking Kikuyu,

Luhya, and Kamba; the Nilotic-speaking Luo; and the Paranilotic-speaking Kalenjin. The

population of Kenya is about 27,885,000(1995 estimate). The overall population density

is about 123 per sq. mi. The population was increasing at a rate of 3.2 % annually in the

early 1990s, among the fastest rates in the world. About 75% of the people live in rural

areas. Kenya is divided into seven administrative provinces-Central, Coast, Eastern,

North-Eastern, Nyanza, Great Rift Valley, and Western-as well as the Nairobi capital

district. Local government matters are handled by provincial advisory councils, whose

members are appointed by the presidents. Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya.

The major seaport is Mombasa, built mostly on an offshore island of the same name.

Other cities are Kisumu, a port city on Lake Victoria, Nakuru, the capital of Rift Valley

Province, and Eldoret, a rail center northeast of Kisumu. The population of Kenya is

estimated to be about 40 % Protestant, 30 % Roman Catholic, and 6% Muslim. The

remaining 24% are largely followers of various traditional religions. Nearly all the

African ethnic groups in Kenya have their own distinct languages, some of which are

closely related. Since the early 20th century Swahili has become a major African tongue,

and it is the official language of Kenya; Kikuyu, Luo, and English are also widely used.

Education is not compulsory in Kenya, but the first eight years of primary school are

provided free by the government. Kenya has four universities: the University of Nairobi

and Kenyatta University, both in Nairobi; Egerton University, in Nakuru; and Moi

University, in Eldoret. Specialized colleges include Mombasa Polytechnic; and the Kenya

Conservatoire of Music, Kenya Polytechnic, and Strathmore College in Nairobi.

Many of Kenya s foremost cultural institutions are in either Nairobi or Mombasa.

In Nairobi are the National Museums of Kenya, which include exhibits on natural history

and geology; the Kenya National Archives; and the McMillan Memorial Library, with a

special collection of Africana. Agriculture is the chief source of income, accounting for

26% of the gross domestic product in the early 1990s. Mining activity takes place on

relatively small scale, but the growing manufacturing industry is more important in Kenya

than in many black African nations. After World War II Kenya experienced one of the

highest rates of economic growth in the world because of the large-scale foreign

investments and the influx of European management and technical personnel. The

government adopted the policy that the growth of the economy should be left to private

enterprise and that the government aid should be restricted to emergencies. Although only

about 4% of the country is made up of arable land, the Kenyan agricultural system is

highly diversified, producing almost every basic foodstuff. Sugarcane, corn, cassava,

pineapples, sisal, cotto

Внимание, отключите Adblock

Вы посетили наш сайт со включенным блокировщиком рекламы!
Ссылка для скачивания станет доступной сразу после отключения Adblock!

Скачать