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Kenya

OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of Kenya

DATE OF FORMATION: 1963

POPULATION: 32.4 million

DENSITY: 148 people per square mile

LANGUAGES: Kiswahili, English, Kikuyu, Luo, Kalenjin, Kamba

RELIGIONS: Christian 60%, Traditional beliefs 25%, Other 9%, Muslim 6%

ETHNIC MIX: Other 30%, Kikuyu 21%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 11%, Kamba 11%

GOVERNMENT: Multiparty elections

CURRENCY: Kenya shilling

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Kenya straddles the equator on Africa's east coast. Its central plateau is bisected by the Great Rift Valley. The land to the north is desert, while to the east lies a fertile coastal belt. After independence from the UK in 1963, politics was dominated by Jomo Kenyatta. He was succeeded as president in 1978 by Daniel arap Moi, whose divide-and-rule policies drew accusations of favoritism and of fomenting ethnic hatreds. After 40 years in power, his KANU was finally defeated in 2002. Economic mainstays are tourism and agriculture.