Facts about Kenya*

Full country name: Republic of Kenya

Capital city: Nairobi

 

 

Location: Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania
Area: 583,000 sq km

 

Population: 39,002,772

  • 0-14 years: 42.3% (male 8,300,393/female 8,181,898)
  • 15-64 years: 55.1% (male 10,784,119/female 10,702,999)
  • 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 470,218/female 563,145) (2009 est.)

 

Life Expectancy: 57.86 years

Languages: English, Swahili, indigenous.

Religion: Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, indigenous beliefs 10%, Muslim 10%, other 2%

 

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.1%; male: 90.6%; female: 79.7%

 

Major Infectious Diseases:

  • degree of risk: high
  • food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
  • vectorborne disease: malaria and Rift Valley fever
  • water contact disease: schistosomiasis
  • animal contact disease: rabies (2009)


GDP per head: $1,600 (2008 est.) [Most of the families living in the area surrounding the school make less than half this amount.]
Annual growth: 0.8%

Unemployment rate: 40% (2008 est.)

Major industries: small-scale consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, soap, cigarettes, flour), agricultural products processing; oil refining, cement; tourism.

*Source: The World Fact Book