Kenya :: essays research papers

Kenya   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kenya is a republic of East Africa. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean on the southeast. The capital of Kenya is Nairobi. It is located in the south central part of the country. It has a population of 1.5 million. The National Musum of Kenya, the National Theater and the University of Nairobi are in the city. Kenya has a humid type of climate with little temperature variation from month to month. The average annual temperature along the coast is 27 degrees celcius, but in Kenya Highlands it is only 14 degrees celcius. About three-fourths of Kenya recieves less than 500ml of rain a year. Most rain fall occurs during the â€Å"long rains† from March to May.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kenya’s population is divided by language and culture into more than 40 different ethnic groups. The largest group is the Kikuyu which makes up 12 per cent of the population and is Bantu speaking. Swahili became the offical language of Kenya in 1974. It is grammatically a Bantu language even though it is heavily influenced of the population and is Bantu speaking. Swahili became the offical language of Kenya in 1974. It is grammatically a Bantu language even though it is heavily influenced by Arabic and is written with the Roman alphabet. English is also an official language and is still widely used.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kenya has no official religion. More than 50 per cent of the population is Christian. Also, many of the people follow traditional religious practices. The population of Kenya was estimated to be about 27,000,000 in 1994. 85 per cent of the total population live in cities of Nairobi and Mombassa. Kenya has one of the highest rates of population growth in the world. It is predicted that the population may reach 120 million by the year 2050. This rapid rate of increase is due to the high birth rate and the low death rate. More than half of the population is under the age of fifteen. The rapid population growth has placed great strains on health facilities and other social services, especially in rural areas.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The main source of income for Kenya comes from agriculture. Coffee and tea are the most valuable crops. Together they account for approximately 50 per cent of all forigien exchange earnings. Because of the rapidly growing population, Kenya now imports large quantities of food, praticularly wheat. Unemployment is high. Expecally in the urban areas.