transitional government note: following a successful referendum on independence for the Autonomous Region of Eritrea on 23-25 April 1993, a National Assembly, composed entirely of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, was established as a transitional legislature; a Constitutional Commission was also established to draft a constitution; ISAIAS Afworki was elected president by the transitional legislature; the constitution, ratified in May 1997, did not enter into effect, pending parliamentary and presidential elections; parliamentary elections were scheduled in December 2001, but were postponed indefinitely; currently the sole legal party is the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)
Independence date
12 December 1963 (from UK)
Religions
Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, Muslim 10%, indigenous beliefs 10%, other 2% note: a large majority of Kenyans are Christian, but estimates for the percentage of the population that adheres to Islam or indigenous beliefs vary widely
Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Languages
English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages
Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages
Kenyan shillings (KES) per US dollar - 68.358 (2008 est.), 68.309 (2007), 72.101 (2006), 75.554 (2005), 79.174 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.800%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
14
0
Location
Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania
Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan
Area
580,367 km sq
117,600 km sq
Coastline
536 km
2,234 km
Climate
varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior
hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually, heaviest June to September); semiarid in western hills and lowlands
