April 2, 2015
Kenya
The U.S. government has long viewed Kenya as a strategic
Figure 1. Kenya Facts
partner and anchor state in East Africa, and critical to
counterterrorism efforts in the region. The United States
values Kenya’s role as a peacemaker among its neighbors
and as a host to refugees from across the troubled region.
Kenya is sub-Saharan Africa’s fourth largest economy; the
country is a regional hub for transportation and finance and
a top tourism destination. Its capital, Nairobi, is home to
one of four major United Nations offices worldwide and
serves as a base for regional humanitarian relief efforts. It
also hosts the largest U.S. diplomatic mission in Africa.
Kenya ranks among the top U.S. foreign aid recipients
globally and is one of the largest African recipients of U.S.
counterterrorism assistance.
As the 2013 assault on Nairobi’s Westgate Mall

underscored, terrorist threats against international and
That coalition slowly unraveled, however, and by 2007 a
domestic targets in Kenya remain a serious concern. At the
political storm fueled by ethnic grievances was brewing as
time, Westgate was the deadliest terrorist attack in Kenya
the next elections approached.
since Al Qaeda’s 1998 bombing of the U.S. embassy. It was
also the first successful large-scale operation in Kenya’s
Kenya is home to more than 50 ethnic groups; no one group
capital by the Al Qaeda-affiliated Somali insurgent group
constitutes a majority. The largest group, the Kikuyu, which
Al Shabaab. Al Shabaab has portrayed its attacks, in part, as
represents roughly 20% of the population, has been
retaliation for Kenya’s role in regional military operations
perceived historically as dominating the political class and
in neighboring Somalia, and has sought recruits from
business community. Under President Jomo Kenyatta, a
Kenya’s minority Muslim population, both to fight in
Kikuyu, the group was seen to benefit disproportionately
Somalia and to wage an insurgency in Kenya.
from the allocation of state resources, namely land and
government jobs and contracts. When Moi, Kenyatta’s vice
Kenya’s government has struggled to balance its response
president, assumed office after Kenyatta’s death in 1978,
to security threats against pressure to protect civil liberties
many of these benefits shifted to his people, a smaller group
and implement political reforms under a new constitution.
of ethnicities collectively referred to as the Kalenjin.
Economic frustration, corruption and other abuses of power
have fueled grievances among the diverse population, and
For almost 40 years, the heartlands of these communities—
ethnic disputes, often stoked by politicians, have marred
the central highlands around Mount Kenya for the Kikuyu
Kenya’s generally peaceful reputation. Perceived impunity
and the central Rift Valley for the Kalenjin—received the
to commit abuse remains a trigger for violence and a
greatest state investment in schools, roads, and health
hindrance to economic development. It is also a source of
services. Other areas were marginalized and have remained
tension between some donors, including the United States,
comparatively underdeveloped, such as the predominately
and the government of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Vice
Muslim northeastern and coastal areas, and western Kenya,
President William Ruto, who were charged in 2012 by the
which is home to the second and third largest ethnic groups,
International Criminal Court (ICC) with orchestrating
the Luhya and Luo. Some Kenyans refer to the dynamic of
crimes against humanity after disputed elections in 2007.
ethnic favoritism, which reinforced a focus on “tribe,” with
Background
such colloquial phrases as “It’s our turn to eat.”
No ethnic group constitutes a large enough voting block for
Kenya was essentially a one-party state from 1964 to 1991.
its political leaders to gain or maintain power alone—the
Long-serving President Daniel arap Moi retained his party’s
electoral system requires them to form alliances. These
political dominance, in part through electoral manipulation
alliances periodically shift; many of today’s politicians
and repression, until 2002, when he retired under donor and
have moved in and out of government and opposition since
domestic pressure. The elections that year were hailed, both
the Moi era. Realignments prior to the December 2007
at home and abroad, as marking a shift in Kenya’s
elections created a particularly volatile ethnic dynamic, and
democratic trajectory. For the first time, the country’s
when then-incumbent President Mwai Kibaki (a Kikuyu)
fractious and primarily ethnically based opposition parties
was declared the winner of an extremely close presidential
came together to defeat Moi’s chosen successor, Uhuru
race amid charges of rigging, opposition protests turned
Kenyatta, son of Kenya’s first president, Jomo Kenyatta.
violent. The violence largely followed ethnic lines in urban
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Kenya
areas and parts of the country where Kikuyu had settled
public vetting and oversight mechanisms for key state
after independence. Some of the worst violence occurred in
institutions, including the judiciary and police, were also
the Rift Valley, where historic land grievances fueled anti-
introduced, as was Kenya’s first bill of rights.
Kikuyu attacks by Kalenjin, who had supported opposition
candidate Raila Odinga, a Luo. Kikuyu gangs also
Kenya revised the statistical measurement of its GDP in
organized retaliatory attacks against non-Kikuyu. Police
2014 and is now classified as a middle–income country and
were implicated in hundreds of deaths. In six weeks, some
one of the world’s fastest growing economies. Agriculture,
1,300 people were killed and 600,000 were displaced.
manufacturing, and real estate are the primary drivers of
growth, but Kenya also has a vibrant telecom industry that
Kenya was effectively paralyzed for two months before
is a global pioneer in mobile banking technology. The
Kibaki and Odinga, under donor pressure, reached a power-
government has taken significant steps to attract foreign
sharing deal mediated by former U.N. Secretary-General
investment, including from China, which is financing
Kofi Annan. A coalition government was formed in April
several major infrastructure projects. Kenya’s middle class
2008, with Kibaki as president and Odinga in a new prime
is growing, although four out of 10 Kenyans still live in
minister position. The parties agreed to draft a new
poverty, according to the World Bank.
constitution and address sensitive land rights issues. A
commission tasked with investigating the post-election
The government is under pressure to improve security and
violence attributed the crisis to, among other factors, the
counter the growing domestic threat posed by violent
political manipulation of perceived ethnic marginalization
extremists. On April 2, 2015, Al Shabaab killed 147 people
and a culture of impunity in the country. After the National
in its deadliest attack in Kenya to date, at a university in the
Assembly declined to create a special tribunal to prosecute
northeast town of Garissa. Along with terrorist activity, a
the worst crimes, the commission gave a list of key suspects
high rate of urban crime threatens foreign investment and
to Annan, who submitted them to the ICC in 2009.
the tourism sector. The government launched a new anti-
corruption drive in March 2015, under which 175 officials
The ICC and the 2013 Elections
have been implicated, among them five senior government
ministers who have been suspended pending investigation.
In 2011, the ICC summoned five senior officials and a radio
journalist on allegations of crimes against humanity. The
U.S. Policy and Foreign Assistance
Court confirmed charges against four of the five, including
Uhuru Kenyatta and prominent Kalenjin politician William
The ICC cases and other governance and human rights
Ruto. Kenya’s government objected to the cases, despite
concerns complicate the U.S.-Kenya relationship. The
being a state party to the ICC. The ICC judges proceeded,
Obama Administration has expressed diplomatic support
finding Kenyan efforts insufficient to constitute credible
for the ICC process for the country, viewing impunity for
domestic prosecution. The ICC’s prosecution of Kenyatta
political violence as a major challenge that threatens
and Ruto was a key issue in the 2013elections, when the
Kenya’s long-term stability. Allegations that Kenyan
two, who were on opposing sides in 2007, successfully ran
security forces have committed serious abuses in the
together on a new Jubilee Coalition presidential ticket.
context of Kenya’s anti-terrorism efforts have strained the
government’s relationship with the country’s Muslim
The 2013 elections were broadly peaceful. Voting largely
minority, and also pose challenges for U.S. counter-
followed ethnic lines, but the combination of Kikuyu and
terrorism cooperation. Heightened terrorist threats have led
Kalenjin on the presidential ticket reduced the prospects for
the U.S. government to reevaluate the size of its presence in
violence during the polls. The Jubilee campaign portrayed
Kenya and at times restrict official travel to parts of the
the ICC cases as part of an international conspiracy against
country. U.S. travel warnings are a source of friction in the
Kenya and emblematic of racial bias on the part of the
bilateral relationship, given their impact on the economy.
Court. Relations with the United States and several other
countries cooled in the aftermath of the election.
The Administration’s FY2016 foreign aid request includes
more than $630 million for Kenya, much of it for health
The ICC trials began in late 2013. While Kenyatta and Ruto
programs. Kenya is a focus country for several presidential
have notionally cooperated with the Court, the cases have
initiatives, including the Global Health Initiative, Feed the
been plagued by allegations of witness intimidation and
Future, Power Africa and the new Security Governance
political interference. In December 2014, the ICC
Initiative. Kenya is also a major recipient of Department of
Prosecutor withdrew the charges against Kenyatta, citing
Defense counterterrorism assistance, totaling more than
insufficient evidence. The case against Ruto continues.
$125 million in training and equipment since FY2006.
President Obama is scheduled to visit Kenya in July 2015
Recent Developments
for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit. It will be his
fourth official trip to sub-Saharan Africa and his first
The Jubilee government faces high expectations from the
official visit to Kenya, where his father, an ethnic Luo from
electorate to improve the economy and deliver on promised
western Kenya, was a senior government economist.
reforms. The 2013 elections were the first held under a new
constitution, adopted in 2010, that brings major changes to
Lauren Ploch Blanchard, lploch@crs.loc.gov, 7-7640
government. It established new checks and balances and a

more deliberate separation of powers, including devolved
authority to a new county level of government. It also
IF10168
created a Supreme Court, an upper house in parliament, and
a new anti-corruption authority and land commission. New
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