Kenya's young and growing population presents a huge market for investors. Even though these statistics do not allow conclusions to be drawn about identification processes in daily life, they hint at the desire by Kenyan Somalis to be accepted as ordinary citizens of the state. About 95% of them are Muslim. You are not required to obtain permission to reuse this article in part or whole. Kenyan Somalis at times naively buy into this national delusion until they are violently awakened to the reality by events like the current exercise [operation usalama watch], and then put in their rightful place. See Balaton-Chrimes, Counting as Citizens.. Ogden is currently growing at a rate of 0.08% annually and its population has increased by 0.25% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 86,726 in 2020. In Nakuru, Somalis have their own mosque, which is not part of the local Muslim Association, and also their business activities mainly take place within Somali networks. Lochery, Rendering Difference Visible, 616. #KenyaInvestmentHub Pride of Africa . Schlee, Territorializing Ethnicity.. This was the time when economic and political developments in Somalia had begun to look more promising than before.Footnote107 Just a short while before she had told me that there were three groups of Somalis in Nakuru: those from Somalia, those from Kenya, and returnees. Those elected in 2013 included a considerable number of Kenyan Somalis, some assuming important positions in parliament and government. 101. http://kenyaimnotaterrorist.tumblr.com [accessed 21 April 2016]. 0-14 years: 36.45% (male 10,447,425/female 10,349,611)15-64 years: 60.26% (male 17,196,347/female 17,185,035)65 years and over: 3.28% (2023 est.) 38. Carrier and Kochore, Navigating Ethnicity, 144. Accessed March 6, 2018. http://www.unhcr.org/ke/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2018/01/Kenya-Operation-Factsheet-December-2017-.pdf. Lochery, Rendering Difference Visible, 617. Possession of Kenyan identity documents is, however, a necessity for participation in the legal aspects of citizenship. Between 2017 and 2023, the population needing humanitarian assistance in parts of Eastern Africa rose from 22.5 million to 68 million and, as reported in the financial tracking systems of the United Nation Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affair- UN-OCHA, the cost of humanitarian assistance doubled from US$4.1 billion to US$9.4 billion. 49. Lewis, The Ogaden, 578; But cf. ), municipal: 500 million cubic meters (2020 est. The term ambiguous citizens seems to capture this situation better than the often-used expression second class citizens, as it carries the notion of uncertainty and the undetermined, as well as the emotional side of citizenship, going beyond a purely legal definition. Lonsdale, Soil, Work, Civilization, 309. )wind: 10.7% of total installed capacity (2020 est. But the Somali dwellers outside North Eastern Province were those who really suffered.Footnote20, Although the emergency regulations persisted until the early 1990s, the northeastern region and its inhabitants became gradually more included into the Kenyan state.Footnote21 After a foiled coup in 1982, President Moi incorporated Somali elites into his apparatus to secure his power base,Footnote22 enabling some of them to make a career in the state administration. )$4,500 (2020 est. The Swahili language is widely used as a means of communication in several East African countries. Amina, a young woman in her early 20s, was born in Nakuru. 112. ), $29.289 billion (2019 est. In the last decade, the government has slowly become more attentive to this region, for instance by the establishment of a Ministry of Northern Kenya and other Arid Areas in 2008.Footnote35 In addition, in 2009, the LAPSSET (Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport) project was announced, aiming at the creation of a infrastructure network linking the northern regions to central Kenya and therefore ideally becoming a means through which northerners could be drawn into the nation proper.Footnote36, The immigration of Somalian refugees enabled more contacts between Kenyan Somalis and Somalians, yet it also led Kenyan Somalis to realign questions of Kenyanness and belonging. There are 18 countries and 2 dependencies in East Africa. Mohammed, from the Dhadhaab (or Dadaab) camp in Kenya, described to Ogaden Online (OO) 1/12/2012 how he was captured by the Ethiopian military, accused of being a supporter of the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) and mercilessly tortured. 83. )3.09% of GDP (2020 est. 80. But it is not that Kenyan Somalis dont want to be part of Kenya. 35. My thanks go to James Carrier, David OKane, John Eidson and Keren Weitzberg for their fruitful comments and to Fatma A. Hassan for her help during fieldwork in Kenya. Lonsdale, Soil, Work, Civilization, 308. 113. I either refer to the name used during the respective period or use the geographical term northeastern region. When applying the population growth of Kenya (3.2%), a conservative approach ignoring the high number in children in many Somali families, to the census figures from 1962 (about 270,000 counted as Somali), one should have expected to count about 640,000 people. Similar living experiences can also result from internal migration, often for educational reasons or because of work. Formula Narratives and the Making of Social Stratification and Inequality, The Ogaden and the Fragility of Somali Segmentary Nationalism, Killing a Mosquito with a Hammer: Al-Shabaab Violence and State Security Responses in Kenya, Between a Protracted and a Crisis Situation: Policy Responses to Somali Refugees in Kenya, Rendering Difference Visible: The Kenyan State and its Somali Citizens, Soil, Work, Civilisation, and Citizenship in Kenya, Autochthony and Family: The Politics of Kinship in White Kenyan Bids to Belong. ), urban population: 29.5% of total population (2023)rate of urbanization: 4.09% annual rate of change (2020-25 est. 11. Secondly, there are urbanized Somalis whose ancestors settled in the colonial towns. agriculture: 34.5% (2017 est. The adjusted numbers published later are still considered dubious by many.Footnote53 Weitzberg has shown how problematic census results were already in colonial times.Footnote54 For nomadic populations, underreporting was observed frequently, as the census logic is linked to a sedentary lifestyle. While she described the first and the third group as being closed, she depicted Kenyan Somalis as open. I met only a few Kenyan Somalis who had family networks spanning across the border to Somalia or who had moved for work reasons to Somalia. In these cases, however, the main difference is also created by the context of socialization. )expenditures: $24.271 billion (2019 est. [3] In 2010, the number of Somalis had risen to about 10,000, among them approximately 2,000 refugees. 58.17million more inhabitants? Overall NFD population is 2.2 million. P. Leftie and J. Otieno, How North Eastern Figures Went Wrong, Daily Nation, 1 September 2010. http://www.nation.co.ke/news/How-North-Eastern-figures-went-wrong-/1056-1001530-1d3tow/index.html. On the massacre see also TJRC, Final Report 2A, 221367, and Sheikh, Blood on the Runway. Abdhullahi, in contrast, mostly stayed away from other Somalis, with the exception of business endeavours. The establishment of Jubbaland in 2013 cemented the return of Ogaden political relevance to Somalia. They share this cleavage with other Kenyan Muslims, especially coastal Arabs and Swahili. Morgan, "Ethnic Geography of Kenya," 79. They did so out of feelings of alienation, but also due to the perception that they were losing out to Kenyan Somalis from the northeastern region, who at this time acquired higher positions in the Kenyan administration.Footnote102 Furthermore, the economic situation of Kenya deteriorated in the 1990s and many families feared to lose their (lower) middle class status which they had preserved after independence.Footnote103 Renewed interest in moving away resulted from the securitized policy of the Kenyan state since 2013.Footnote104 To go to Europe, the two brothers had to become more Somali by learning the language properly. Since her parents separated, there has been almost no contact between the father and his four daughters. Counting ethnic affiliation was seen by some commentatorsFootnote49 as reintroducing ethnicity into politics when unity should be paramount. At the same time, new trade routes emerged between Kenya and Somalia. ), conventional long form: Republic of Kenyaconventional short form: Kenyalocal long form: Republic of Kenya (English)/ Jamhuri ya Kenya (Swahili)local short form: Kenyaformer: British East Africaetymology: named for Mount Kenya; the meaning of the name is unclear but may derive from the Kikuyu, Embu, and Kamba words "kirinyaga," "kirenyaa," and "kiinyaa" - all of which mean "God's resting place", name: Nairobigeographic coordinates: 1 17 S, 36 49 Etime difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)etymology: the name derives from the Maasai expression meaning "cool waters" and refers to a cold water stream that flowed through the area in the late 19th century, 47 counties; Baringo, Bomet, Bungoma, Busia, Elgeyo/Marakwet, Embu, Garissa, Homa Bay, Isiolo, Kajiado, Kakamega, Kericho, Kiambu, Kilifi, Kirinyaga, Kisii, Kisumu, Kitui, Kwale, Laikipia, Lamu, Machakos, Makueni, Mandera, Marsabit, Meru, Migori, Mombasa, Murang'a, Nairobi City, Nakuru, Nandi, Narok, Nyamira, Nyandarua, Nyeri, Samburu, Siaya, Taita/Taveta, Tana River, Tharaka-Nithi, Trans Nzoia, Turkana, Uasin Gishu, Vihiga, Wajir, West Pokot, Jamhuri Day (Independence Day), 12 December (1963); note - Madaraka Day, 1 June (1963) marks the day Kenya attained internal self-rule, history: current constitution passed by referendum on 4 August 2010amendments: amendments can be proposed by either house of Parliament or by petition of at least one million eligible voters; passage of amendments by Parliament requires approval by at least two-thirds majority vote of both houses in each of two readings, approval in a referendum by majority of votes cast by at least 20% of eligible voters in at least one half of Kenyas counties, and approval by the president; passage of amendments introduced by petition requires approval by a majority of county assemblies, approval by majority vote of both houses, and approval by the president, mixed legal system of English common law, Islamic law, and customary law; judicial review in the new Supreme Court established by the new constitution, accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction, citizenship by birth: nocitizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Kenyadual citizenship recognized: yesresidency requirement for naturalization: 4 out of the previous 7 years, chief of state: President William RUTO (since 13 September 2022); note - the president is both chief of state and head of governmenthead of government: President William RUTO (since 13 September 2022)cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president, subject to confirmation by the National Assemblyelections/appointments: president and deputy president directly elected on the same ballot by qualified majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); in addition to receiving an absolute majority popular vote, the presidential candidate must also win at least 25% of the votes cast in at least 24 of the 47 counties to avoid a runoff; election last held on 9 August 2022 (next to be held in 2027)election results: 2017: Uhuru KENYATTA reelected president; percent of vote - Uhuru KENYATTA (Jubilee Party) 98.3%, Raila ODINGA (ODM) 1%, other 0.7%; note - Kenya held a previous presidential election on 8 August 2017, but Kenya's Supreme Court on 1 September 2017 nullified the results, citing irregularities; the political opposition boycotted the October vote2013: Uhuru KENYATTA elected president in first round; percent of vote - Uhuru KENYATTA (TNA) 50.1%, Raila ODINGA (ODM) 43.7%, Musalia MUDAVADI (UDF) 4.0%, other 2.2%, description: bicameral Parliament consists of:Senate (68 seats; 47 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 20 directly elected by proportional representation vote - 16 women, 2 representing youth, 2 representing the disabled, and one Senate speaker; members serve 5-year terms)National Assembly (350 seats; 290 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 47 women in single-seat constituencies elected by simple majority vote, and 12 members nominated by the National Assembly - 6 representing youth and 6 representing the disabled, and one Assembly speaker; members serve 5-year terms)elections: Senate - last held on 9 August 2022 (next to be held in August 2027)National Assembly - last held on 9 August 2022 (next to be held in August 2027)election results: Senate - percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by party/coalition - Kenya Kwanza 34; Azimio La Umoja 33; composition - men 47, women 21, percent of women is 31%National Assembly - percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by party/coalition - Azimio La Umoja 173, Kenya Kwanza 161, independent 12, other 3; composition - men 275, women 75, percent of women 21.4%; note - total Parliament percent of women 23%, highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of chief and deputy chief justices and 5 judges)judge selection and term of office: chief and deputy chief justices nominated by Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and appointed by the president with approval of the National Assembly; other judges nominated by the JSC and appointed by president; chief justice serves a nonrenewable 10-year term or until age 70, whichever comes first; other judges serve until age 70subordinate courts: High Court; Court of Appeal; military courts; magistrates' courts; religious courts, Azimio La UmojaOne Kenya Coalition Party [Raila ODINGA] (includes DAP-K, JP, KANU, KUP, MCC, MDG, ODM, PAA, UDM, UDP, UPA, UPIA, and WDM-K)Amani National Congress or ANC [Musalia MUDAVADI]Chama Cha Kazi or CCK [Moses KURIA]Democratic Action Party or DAP-K [Wafula WAMUNYINYI]Democratic Party or DP [Joseph MUNYAO, Chairman]Forum for the Restoration of DemocracyKenya or FORD-Kenya [Moses WETANGULA]Grand Dream Development Party or GDDP [Fabian KYULE]IndependentsJubilee Party or JP [Uhuru KENYATTA]Kenya African National Union or KANU [Gideon MOI]Kenya Kwanza coalition [William RUTO] (includes ANC, CCK, DP, FORD-Kenya, TSP, and UDA)Kenya Union Party or KUP [John LONYANGAPUO]Maendeleo Chap Chap Party or MCC [Alfred MUTUA]Movement for Democracy and Growth or MDG [David OCHIENG]National Agenda Party or NAP-K [Alfayo AGUFANA]National Ordinary People Empowerment Union or NOPEU [Rodgers MPURU, Secretary General}Orange Democratic Movement or ODM [Raila ODINGA]Pamoja African Alliance or PAA [Amason KINGI]The Service Party or TSP [Mwangi KIUNJURI]United Democratic Alliance or UDA [William RUTO]United Democratic Movement or UDM [Philip MURGOR]United Democratic Party or UDP [Cyrus Jirongo]United Party of Independent Alliance or UPIA [Ukur YATANI]United Progressive Alliance or UPA [Kenneth NYAMWAMU]Wiper Democratic Movement-Kenya or WDM-K [Kalonzo MUSYOKA]note: only parties with seats in the National Assembly and Senate included , ACP, AfDB, ATMIS, AU, C, CD, COMESA, EAC, EADB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCT, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNSOM, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WMO, WTO, chief of mission: Ambassador Lazarus Ombai AMAYO (since 17 July 2020)chancery: 1616 P Street NW, Suite 340, Washington, DC 20036telephone: [1] (202) 387-6101FAX: [1] (202) 462-3829email address and website: information@kenyaembassydc.orghttps://kenyaembassydc.org/#consulate(s) general: Los Angelesconsulate(s): New York, chief of mission: Ambassador Margaret "Meg" WHITMAN (since 5 August 2022)embassy: P.O.