Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Kenya Kikuyu woman in traditional attire.

Kenya has a diverse population that includes most major ethnoracial and linguistic groups found in Africa. There are an estimated 42 different communities, with Bantus (67%) and Nilotes (30%) constituting the majority of local residents. Cushitic groups also form a small ethnic minority, as do Arabs, Indians and Europeans.

According to the CIA World Fact Book, ethnic groups in the nation are represented as follows: Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1%.

The country has a young population, with 73% of residents aged below 30 years because of rapid population growth; from 2.9 million to 40 million inhabitants over the last century.

Kenya's various ethnic groups typically speak their mother tongues within their own communities. The two official languages, English and Swahili, are used in varying degrees of fluency for communication with other populations. English is widely spoken in commerce, schooling and government. Peri-urban and rural dwellers are less multilingual, with many in rural areas speaking only their native languages.

According to Ethnologue, there are a total of 69 languages spoken in Kenya. Most belong to two broad linguistic families: Niger-Congo (Bantu branch) and Nilo-Saharan (Nilotic branch), spoken by the country's Bantu and Nilotic populations, respectively. The Cushitic and Arab ethnic minorities speak languages belonging to the separate Afro-Asiatic family, with the Hindustani and European residents speaking languages from the Indo-European phylum.

In addition, Kenya's capital, Nairobi, is home to Kibera, one of the world's largest slums. The shanty town is believed to house between 170,000 and 1 million locals. The UNHCR base in Dadaab in the north also currently houses around 500,000 people.

v t e Largest cities or towns of Kenya Rank City name County Pop. Nairobi Mombasa 1 Nairobi Nairobi 3 138 369 Nakuru Eldoret 2 Mombasa Mombasa 966 000 3 Nakuru Nakuru 259 903 4 Eldoret Uasin Gishu 218 446 5 Kisumu Kisumu 216 479 6 Thika Kiambu 99 322 7 Kitale Trans Nzoia 75 123 8 Malindi Kilifi 68 304 9 Garissa Garissa 67 861 10 Kakamega Kakamega 63 426

Religion Main article: Religion in Kenya Holy Ghost RC cathedral in Mombasa.

The vast majority of Kenyans are Christian (83%), with 47.7% regarding themselves as Protestant and 23.5% as Roman Catholic of the Latin Rite. The Presbyterian Church of East Africa has 4,000 000 followers in Kenya and the surrounding countries. Wycliffe Ambetsa Oparanya, Minister of State for Planning, National Development and Vision 2030. knbs.or.ke 31 August 2010</ref> There are smaller conservative Reformed churches, the Africa Evangelical Presbyterian Church, the Independent Presbyterian Church in Kenya, and the Reformed Church of East Africa. 621,200 of Kenyans are Orthodox Christians. Notably, Kenya has the highest number of Quakers in the world, with around 133,000 members. Sizeable minorities of other faiths do exist (Muslim 11.2%, irreligious 2.4%, indigenous beliefs 1.7%). Sixty percent of the Muslim population lives in Coast Province, comprising 50 percent of the total population there. Western areas of Coast Province are mostly Christian. The upper part of Eastern Province is home to 10 percent of the country's Muslims, where they constitute the majority religious group. In addition, there is a large Hindu population in Kenya (around 300,000), who have played a key role in the local economy, they are mostly of Indian Origin. There is also a small group of Baha'is.

Health Main article: Health in Kenya See also: Healthcare in Kenya Outpatient Department of AIC Kapsowar Hospital in Kapsowar.

Nurses treat 80 percent of the population who visit dispensaries, health centres and private clinics in rural and under-served urban areas. Complicated cases are referred to clinical officers, medical officers and consultants (specialists). According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, in 2011 there were 65,000 qualified nurses registered in the country; 8,600 clinical officers and 7,000 doctors for the population of 43 million people (These figures from official registers include those who have died or left the profession hence the actual number of these workers may be lower).

Despite major achievements in the health sector, Kenya still faces many challenges. The life expectancy estimate has dropped to approximately 55 years in 2009 – five years below 1990 levels. The infant mortality rate is high at approximately 44 deaths per 1,000 children in 2012. The WHO estimated in 2011 that only 42% of births were attended by a skilled health professional.

Diseases of poverty directly correlate with a country's economic performance and wealth distribution: Half of Kenyans live below the poverty line near a struggling middle-class and preventable diseases like malaria, HIV/AIDS, pneumonia, diarrhoea and malnutrition are the biggest burden, major child-killers and responsible for much morbidity; weak policies, corruption, inadequate health workers, weak management and poor leadership in the public health sector are largely to blame. According to 2009 estimates, HIV prevalence is about 6.3% of the adult population. However, the 2011 UNAIDS Report suggests that the HIV epidemic may be improving in Kenya, as HIV prevalence is declining among young people (ages 15–24) and pregnant women.

The total fertility rate in Kenya is estimated to be 4.49 children per woman in 2012. Maternal mortality is high, partly because of female genital mutilation. This practice is however on the decline as the country becomes more modernised and the practice was also banned in the country in 2011.