Polity · 1963 CE – present
Republic of Kenya
Kenya · Kenya · Republic of Kenya (English)/ Jamhuri ya Kenya (Swahili)
Also recorded as Kenya
- Peak recorded area
- 1,041,480 km²
- 1891 CE
- Rulers on record
- 19
- from 1964 CE
- Data series
- 422
- 1963 CE–2025 CE
Overview
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 53.3 million as of mid-2025, Kenya is the 27th-most populous country in the world and the seventh-most populous in Africa. Kenya's capital and largest city is Nairobi. The second-largest and oldest city is Mombasa, a major port city located on Mombasa Island. Other major cities within the country include Kisumu, Nakuru and Eldoret.
Lead section from Wikipedia, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article.
Territory
11 dated territorial extents on record from CShapes 2.0. Areas are measured off the recorded polygons; the line steps because each extent holds until the next one is recorded — nothing is interpolated. Cliopatria holds 2 further extents, measured on a different basis and deliberately not merged into this series.
The record
The best-attested series in each category; where several projects publish the same quantity, the one with the most observations is shown. Each row is the most recent value the record holds at or before the last complete year, shown with the year that value belongs to. Some statistical series also publish forward projections — the year column is the honest guide. Nothing on this page is interpolated or estimated by us.
People
6 of 60 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Population216 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 57.5Mpersons2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy165 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 64.01years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Net Migration141 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | -27.3Kpersons2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Population Growth141 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 1.92% annual2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy Female140 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 66.32years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy Male140 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 61.8years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
Economy
6 of 165 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita PPP220 obs · 1800 CE–2019 CE | 3,355int'l $ (inflation adj.)2019 CE · Gapminder |
| GDP Current Usd111 obs · 1960 CE–2025 CE | 135.9Bcurrent US$2025 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| GDP per capita101 obs · 1904 CE–2022 CE | 3,403.922011 int'l $2022 CE · Maddison Project Database 2023 |
| Real Wage76 obs · 1904 CE–1991 CE | 7.15index (1500=1)1991 CE · Clio-Infra |
| Agriculture % GDP66 obs · 1960 CE–2025 CE | 23.16% of GDP2025 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Industry % GDP66 obs · 1960 CE–2025 CE | 16.27% of GDP2025 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
Military
6 of 43 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Military Expenditure % GDP130 obs · 1960 CE–2024 CE | 0.9995% of GDP2024 CE · SIPRI Military Expenditure Database |
| Military Expenditure Constant Usd65 obs · 1960 CE–2024 CE | 1,129.81millions_usd_20232024 CE · SIPRI Military Expenditure Database |
| Military Expenditure Usd65 obs · 1960 CE–2024 CE | 1.2Bcurrent US$2024 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| CINC Score54 obs · 1963 CE–2016 CE | 0.002CINC (share of world capability)2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Energy Consumption54 obs · 1963 CE–2016 CE | 20Mcoal-ton equivalents2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Iron Steel Production54 obs · 1963 CE–2016 CE | 20Ktons2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
Territory & resources
6 of 66 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Arable Land %126 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 11.42% of land area2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Forest Area %68 obs · 1990 CE–2023 CE | 6.22% of land area2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Agricultural Land %63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 49.53%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Arable Land per capita Ha63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 0.1198hectares per person2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Fao Agricultural Land63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 28.8Mha2023 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Arable Land63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 6.6Mha2023 CE · FAOSTAT |
Governance
6 of 29 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Electoral Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.549index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Liberal Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.432index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Participatory Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.355index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Regime Type125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 2RoW index (0-3)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Rule Of Law Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.647index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Polity250 obs · 1963 CE–2012 CE | 8index (-10 to 10)2012 CE · Clio-Infra |
Development
6 of 59 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Tech Railway Line Km137 obs · 1862 CE–1998 CE | 2,780km1998 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Freedom Of Expression Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.896index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Tech Mail Items80 obs · 1909 CE–1993 CE | 381items1993 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Tech Railway Freight Tkm69 obs · 1900 CE–1993 CE | 1,479tonne-km1993 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Tech Electricity Production64 obs · 1938 CE–2001 CE | 4.4BGWh2001 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Tech Commercial Vehicles61 obs · 1932 CE–1997 CE | 199count1997 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
Rulers
19 on record with dated reigns. Reign years follow the house convention: BCE years are negative.
- Jaramogi Oginga OdingaVice-President of Kenya1964 CE – 1966 CE
- Jomo KenyattaPresident of Kenya1964 CE – 1978 CE
- Joseph MurumbiVice-President of Kenya1966 CE
- Daniel arap MoiVice-President of Kenya1967 CE – 1978 CE
- Daniel arap MoiPresident of Kenya1978 CE – 2002 CE
- Mwai KibakiVice-President of Kenya1978 CE – 1988 CE
- Josephat KaranjaVice-President of Kenya1988 CE – 1989 CE
- George SaitotiVice-President of Kenya1989 CE – 1998 CE
- Musalia MudavadiVice-President of Kenya2002 CE – 2003 CE
- Mwai KibakiPresident of Kenya2002 CE – 2013 CE
- Michael Kijana WamalwaVice-President of Kenya2003 CE
- Moody AworiVice-President of Kenya2003 CE – 2008 CE
- Kalonzo MusyokaVice-President of Kenya2008 CE – 2013 CE
- Uhuru KenyattaHead of State2013 CE – 2022 CE
- Uhuru KenyattaHead of Government2013 CE – 2022 CE
- William RutoVice-President of Kenya2013 CE – 2022 CE
- Rigathi GachaguaVice-President of Kenya2022 CE –
- William RutoHead of Government2022 CE –
- William RutoHead of State2022 CE –
Country profile
From the CIA World Factbook 2024. Long entries are trimmed at a sentence boundary.
- Location
- Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania
- Government type
- presidential republic
- Executive branch
- chief of state: President William RUTO (since 13 September 2022); head of government: President William RUTO (since 13 September 2022); cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president, subject to confirmation by the National Assembly;
- Ethnic groups
- Kikuyu 17.1%, Luhya 14.3%, Kalenjin 13.4%, Luo 10.7%, Kamba 9.8%, Somali 5.8%, Kisii 5.7%, Mijikenda 5.2%, Meru 4.2%, Maasai 2.5%, Turkana 2.1%, non-Kenyan 1%, other 8.2% (2019 est.)
- Natural resources
- limestone, soda ash, salt, gemstones, fluorspar, zinc, diatomite, gypsum, wildlife, hydropower
- Economy
- fast growing, third largest Sub-Saharan economy; strong agriculture sector with emerging services and tourism industries; IMF program to address current account and debt service challenges; business-friendly policies foster infrastructure investment, digital innovation and public-private partnerships;
Language & currency
- Official & national languages
- English, Kiswahili
- Currency
- Kenyan shillings (KES)
Memberships
- United NationsUNInternational organisation · member1963 CE –
- African UnionAUInternational organisation · founding member1963 CE –
- Commonwealth of NationsCWInternational organisation · member1963 CE –
- Kenya–Ethiopia Defense Pact (1963)Military alliance · member1963 CE –
- 11-member Defense Pact (2006)Military alliance · member2006 CE –
Sources
Every figure above comes from one of these. Nothing on this page is estimated, interpolated or model-generated.
CHAT (Comin-Hobijn)2009 (FinalCHAT_72909)
Comin, D. & Hobijn, B. (2009). The CHAT Dataset. NBER Working Paper 15319.
NBER research data, freely downloadable
CIA World Factbook 2024
Clio-Infra2017 datasets
Clio-Infra project (2017). Reconstructions of global inequality and well-being. International Institute of Social History.
Academic use, attribution
Correlates of War NMC v6.0v6.0
Singer, J.D. (1987). National Material Capabilities Data (NMC), v6.0. Correlates of War Project.
Free academic use, citation
CShapes 2.02.0
Schvitz, G. et al. (2022). Mapping the International System, 1886-2019: The CShapes 2.0 Dataset. Journal of Conflict Resolution 66(1).
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
FAOSTAT2024 release
FAO (2024). FAOSTAT Statistical Database. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome.
CC BY 4.0
Gapminderv14 / systema globalis
Gapminder Foundation. Gapminder systema globalis dataset.
CC BY 4.0
Maddison Project Database 20232023
Bolt, J. & van Zanden, J.L. (2024). Maddison Project Database 2023. University of Groningen GGDC.
CC BY 4.0
SIPRI Military Expenditure Database2024
SIPRI (2024). Military Expenditure Database.
Free for non-commercial use, attribution
UN World Population Prospects 20242024
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2024). World Population Prospects 2024.
CC BY 3.0 IGO
V-Dem v15v15
Coppedge, M. et al. (2025). V-Dem Country-Year Dataset v15. Varieties of Democracy Project.
Free academic/non-commercial use, attribution
Wikipedia contributors. Article lead sections, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
World Bank World Development Indicators2024 release
World Bank (2024). World Development Indicators. Washington, DC.
CC BY 4.0
Republic of Kenya is one of the polities with a sourced record deep enough to publish.