Politics of Kenya - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Politics of Kenya take place in a framework of a presidential

Presidential system

A presidential system is a system of government where an executive branch exists and presides separately from the legislature, to which it is not responsible and which cannot, in normal circumstances, dismiss it....

representative democratic

Representative democracy

Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principle of elected individuals representing the people, as opposed to autocracy and direct democracy...

republic

Republic

A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...

, whereby the President of Kenya is both head of state

Head of State

A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...

and head of government

Head of government

Head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled prime minister, chief minister, premier, etc...

, and of a multi-party system

Multi-party system

A multi-party system is a system in which multiple political parties have the capacity to gain control of government separately or in coalition, e.g.The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition in the United Kingdom formed in 2010. The effective number of parties in a multi-party system is normally...

. Recent constitutional amendments have enabled sharing of executive powers between the President

President

A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...

and a Prime Minister

Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...

. Executive power

Executive Power

Executive Power is Vince Flynn's fifth novel, and the fourth to feature Mitch Rapp, an American agent that works for the CIA as an operative for a covert counter terrorism unit called the "Orion Team."-Plot summary:...

is exercised by the government, with powers shared between the President

President

A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...

and a Prime Minister

Prime minister

, who coordinates and supervises the cabinet. Legislative power is vested in both the government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

and the National Assembly

National Assembly of Kenya

The unicameral National Assembly of Kenya is the country's legislative body.The current National Assembly has a total of 224 members. 210 members are directly elected in single member constituencies using the simple majority system...

. The judiciary

Judiciary

The judiciary is the system of courts that interprets and applies the law in the name of the state. The judiciary also provides a mechanism for the resolution of disputes...

is independent of the executive and the legislature.

A constitutional referendum was held in Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

on August 4, 2010 on whether to adopt the new proposed constitution passed by parliament on April 1, 2010. It was promulgated on 27 August 2010 at a euphoric ceremony in Nairobi's Uhuru Park

Uhuru Park

Uhuru Park is a recreational park adjacent to the central business district of Nairobi, Kenya. It contains an artificial lake and an assembly ground used for occasional political and religious gatherings...

, accompanied by a 21-gun salute. The event was graced by a number of African leaders and praised by the international community. On that day the new constitution, heralding the Second Republic, came into force.

Executive branch

|President

Heads of state of Kenya

-Heads of State of Kenya :-Affiliations:*KANU - Kenya African National Union*PNU - Party of National Unity-Latest election:-See also:*List of colonial heads of Kenya*Kenya**Heads of Government of Kenya**Vice-Presidents of Kenya...

|Mwai Kibaki

Mwai Kibaki

Mwai Kibaki is the current and third President of the republic of Kenya.Kibaki was previously Vice President of Kenya for ten years from 1978–1988 and also held cabinet ministerial positions, including a widely acclaimed stint as Minister for Finance , Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for...

|PNU

Party of National Unity (Kenya)

Party of National Unity was founded as a political coalition of parties in Kenya. On September 16, 2007, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki announced the party formation and said that he would run as its presidential candidate in the December 2007 Kenyan elections...

|29 December 2007
|-
|Prime Minister

Prime minister

|Raila Odinga

Raila Odinga

Raila Amollo Odinga , also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. He has served as a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, was Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002, and was Minister of Roads,...

|ODM

Orange Democratic Movement

Orange Democratic Movement refers to a political party in Kenya, which is the successor of a former grassroots people's movement which was formed in the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum. The erstwhile single party which separated in August 2007 into two...

|17 April 2008
|-
|Vice President

Vice president

A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...

|Kalonzo Musyoka

Kalonzo Musyoka

Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Vice President of Kenya. Musyoka served in the government under President Daniel arap Moi and was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998; subsequently, under President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs...

|ODM-K
|18 January 2008
|}
The president is elected for a five year term by the people. As of the 2012 general election, the Constitution of Kenya has two requirements for any candidate to be declared winner:

to garner an absolute majority of votes among all contestants nationwide.
to win at least 25% of the vote in a majority of Kenya's forty seven counties

If none of the candidates fulfils these requirements there is to be a runoff between the two contenders with the highest number of votes.
The vice president

Vice-President of Kenya

The Vice-President of Kenya is the second-highest executive official in the Kenyan government.-List of Vice-Presidents of Kenya:*Jaramogi Oginga Odinga *Joseph Zuzarte Murumbi *Daniel arap Moi...

will be the running mate of the candidate that wins the presidential election whilst other cabinet members will be appointed, with approval from the National Assembly, from outside Parliament. Under the power sharing agreement, set to lapse at the 2012 general election, signed by President Mwai Kibaki

Mwai Kibaki

and Prime Minister Raila Odinga

Raila Odinga

of the Orange Democratic Movement

Orange Democratic Movement

, the post of prime minister

Prime minister

was constitutionally created and ministers appointed to reflect political parties' relative strength in the National Assembly. The Raila Odinga

Raila Odinga

led party, the Orange Democratic Movement

Orange Democratic Movement

is currently the largest party in Kenya's parliament. Under the power-sharing agreement, each of the two major parties also nominated a deputy prime minister.

Legislative branch

The unicameral National Assembly

National Assembly of Kenya

or Bunge has 224 members, 210 members elected for a five year term in single-seat constituencies, 12 members nominated by political parties in proportion to their share of seats won in the single-member constituencies and 2 ex officio members: the attorney general and the speaker. From the 2012 elections, and subject to an ongoing electoral boundary review, a further 80 members for single member constituencies will be added to the National Assembly in addition to 47 women elected from counties, as it becomes the lower house in a [bicameral] parliament. There will be a senate with 68 members. 47 will be elected from counties acting as single member constituences, 16 women nominated by political parties, a man and a woman to represent youths and a man and woman to represent people with disabities. The speaker will be an ex officio member.
Kenyan Parliament Building http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/15077521.jpg

Judicial branch

The judiciary is divided into Superior Courts and Subordinate Courts. Superior Courts consist of: a chief justice, deputy chief justice (who are members of the Supreme Court), Supreme Court judges, High Court judges, and judges of Kenya's Court of Appeal (no associate judges) appointed by an independent Judicial Service Commission. The Chief Justice and his or her deputy are nominated by the President from names selected by the Judicial Service Commission and vetted by the National Assembly. Subordinates Courts are Magistrates Courts, Kadhi Courts and Courts Martial.

Administrative divisions

Local administration is divided among 69 rural districts, each headed by a presidentially appointed commissioner. The districts are joined to form seven rural provinces. The government supervises administration of districts and provinces. The administrative divisions are 8 provinces: Central, Coast, Eastern, Nairobi, North Eastern, Nyanza

Nyanza

Nyanza may refer to:*Nyanza, Rwanda**Nyanza District, the district surrounding Nyanza, Rwanda*Nyanza Province, Kenya*Nyanza Lac, Burundi*Nyanza, the Bantu word for lake, in particular:**Lake Albert **Lake Edward...

, Rift Valley

Rift Valley Province, Kenya

Rift Valley Province of Kenya, bordering Uganda, is one of Kenya's seven administrative provinces outside Nairobi.Rift Valley Province is the largest and one of the most economically important provinces in Kenya. It is dominated by the Great Rift Valley which passes through it and gives the...

, Western.
The court of laws also fall under this arm/branch of government.

Political conditions

Since independence, Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

has maintained remarkable stability despite changes in its political system and crises in neighboring countries. Particularly since the re-emergence of multiparty democracy, Kenyans have enjoyed an increased degree of freedom.

A cross-party parliamentary reform initiative in the fall of 1997 revised some oppressive laws inherited from the colonial era that had been used to limit freedom of speech and assembly. This improved public freedoms and contributed to generally credible national elections in December 1997.

In December 2002, Kenya held democratic

Democracy

Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...

and open elections and elected Mwai Kibaki as their new president. The elections, which were judged free and fair by local and international observers, marked an important turning point in Kenya's democratic evolution. President Kibaki campaigned on a policy of generating economic growth, improving education, combating corruption, and implementing a new constitution, the draft of which was produced by Professor Ghai under the Moi regime. Considerable success has been achieved in the first two policy areas, the constitutional process has become mired (see below) and the fight against corruption has been a disaster. There has been a major scandal (Anglo-Leasing), which the government has failed to investigate, John Githongo

John Githongo

John Githongo is a former Kenyan journalist who investigated bribery and fraud in his home country and later, under the presidency of Mwai Kibaki, took on an official governmental position to fight corruption. In 2005 he left that position, later accusing top ministers of large-scale fraud...

the Anti-Corruption head has resigned in protest and donor nations, in particular the British, have made public criticisms of the lack of progress.

Following disagreements between the partners in the current government coalition, constitutional reform has proceeded slower than anticipated. The NAK faction (allied to president Kibaki) favours a centralized presidential system, while the LDP faction - which has fewer parliamentary seats in the coalition than NAK - demands a federal, parliamentary system.

Prior to the 2002 election, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)was agreed between NAK and LDP, which laid the basis for the two groups to fight the election under the NARC (Rainbow Alliance) banner. The MoU agreed that a new constitution would be established shortly after the election, which provided for the new role of a strong Prime Minister while weakening the role of President. Raila Odinga, the leader of LDP, maintains aspirations to become Prime Minister. However, the proposed new constitution has been modified by the government from what was written by Professor Ghai and amended by the Bomas committee. This maintains a strong President, who controls a weaker Prime Minister. This has led to a split between NAK and LDP, with the former campaigning for a 'Yes' vote in the forthcoming referendum on the constitution and the latter a 'No'. Also supporting a 'No' vote is the majority of Uhuru Kenyatta's KANU party, the sole party of government from independence to 2002. It is possible that the political alignment over the referendum could signal a wider re-alignment before the 2007 elections.

Internal wrangling within the governing coalition has also negatively affected other crucial areas of governance, notably the planned large-scale privatization of government-owned enterprises.

The 2007 presidential elections were largely believed to have been flawed with international observers stating that they did not meet regional or international standards. Most observers suggest that the tallying process for the presidential results were rigged to the advantage of the incumbent president Mwai Kibaki

Mwai Kibaki

, despite overwhelming indications that his rival and current Prime Minister

Prime minister

of Kenya, Raila Odinga

Raila Odinga

, won the election. In July 2008, exit polls commissioned by the US government were released, revealing that Odinga had won the election by a comfortable margin of 6%, well outside of the poll's 1.3% margin of error.

There was significant and widespread violence in the country - 2007–2008 Kenyan crisis

2007–2008 Kenyan crisis

The 2007–2008 Kenyan crisis refers to a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis that erupted in Kenya after incumbent President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner of the presidential election held on December 27, 2007. Supporters of Kibaki's opponent, Raila Odinga of the Orange Democratic...

- following the unprecedented announcement of Kibaki as the winner of the 2007 presidential elections

Kenyan presidential election, 2007

A presidential election was held as part of the Kenyan general election on December 27, 2007; parliamentary elections were held on the same date. Incumbent President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner and sworn in on December 30, despite opposition leader Raila Odinga's claims of victory...

. The violence leading to the deaths of almost 1000 and the displacement of almost 600,000 and some researchers

Overseas Development Institute

The Overseas Development Institute is one of the leading independent think tanks on international development and humanitarian issues. Based in London, its mission is "to inspire and inform policy and practice which lead to the reduction of poverty, the alleviation of suffering and the achievement...

note it allowed the violent settlement of land disputes between ethnic groups over controversial concepts of 'ancestral homelands'. A diplomatic solution was achieved, as the two rivals were later united in a grand coalition government following international mediation, led by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, under a power-sharing National Accord on Reconciliation Act, entrenched in the constitution. Following the agreement, power was shared between President Mwai Kibaki

Mwai Kibaki

and Prime Minister, Raila Odinga

Raila Odinga

.

Several steps were recommended to ensure stability and peace for the Nation during the negotiations that led to the formation of the Coalition government.One of these reforms is the famous Agenda 4 that deals with reforms in various sectors. A new constitution has been identified as a key area in fulfilling Agenda 4. A draft constitution has been published and Kenyans will vote on August 4, 2010 for or against the proposed constitution.

International organization participation

Kenya is member of
ACP,
AfDB

African Development Bank

The African Development Bank Group is a development bank established in 1964 with the intention of promoting economic and social development in Africa...

,
AU

African Union

The African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...

Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...

,
EADB,
ECA

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa was established in 1958 by the United Nations Economic and Social Council to encourage economic cooperation among its member states following a recommendation of the United Nations General Assembly.It is one of five regional commissions.The ECA...

,
FAO

Fão

Fão is a town in Esposende Municipality in Portugal....

,
G-15

Group of 15

The Group of 15 was established at the Ninth Non-Aligned Movement Summit Meeting in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in September 1989.This informal forum was set up to foster cooperation and provide input for other international groups, such as the World Trade Organization and the Group of Eight...

,
G-77

Group of 77

The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but the organization has...

,
IAEA

International Atomic Energy Agency

The International Atomic Energy Agency is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. The IAEA was established as an autonomous organization on 29 July 1957...

,
IBRD

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development is one of five institutions that compose the World Bank Group. The IBRD is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by World War II. Now, its mission has expanded to fight...

,
ICAO

International Civil Aviation Organization

The International Civil Aviation Organization , pronounced , , is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth...

,
ICCt

International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...

(signatory),
ICRM

International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an international humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide which was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and to prevent and alleviate human...

,
IDA

International Development Association

The International Development Association , is the part of the World Bank that helps the world’s poorest countries. It complements the World Bank's other lending arm — the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development — which serves middle-income countries with capital investment and...

,
IFAD

International Fund for Agricultural Development

The International Fund for Agricultural Development , a specialized agency of the United Nations, was established as an international financial institution in 1977 as one of the major outcomes of the 1974 World Food Conference. IFAD is dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries...

,
IFC

International Finance Corporation

The International Finance Corporation promotes sustainable private sector investment in developing countries.IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States....

,
IFRCS

International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement

,
IGAD,
ILO

International Labour Organization

The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...

,
IMF

International Monetary Fund

The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...

,
IMO

International Maritime Organization

The International Maritime Organization , formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization , was established in Geneva in 1948, and came into force ten years later, meeting for the first time in 1959...

,
ITUC

International Trade Union Confederation

The International Trade Union Confederation is the world's largest trade union federation. It was formed on November 1, 2006 out of the merger of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and the World Confederation of Labour...

, Interpol

Interpol

Interpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...

,
IOC,
IOM

International Organization for Migration

The International Organization for Migration is an intergovernmental organization. It was initially established in 1951 as the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration to help resettle people displaced by World War II....

,
ISO

International Organization for Standardization

The International Organization for Standardization , widely known as ISO, is an international standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Founded on February 23, 1947, the organization promulgates worldwide proprietary, industrial and commercial...

,
ITU

International Telecommunication Union

The International Telecommunication Union is the specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for information and communication technologies...

,
MINURSO

United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara

MINURSO is the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara. The name is a French acronym for "Mission des Nations Unies pour l'Organisation d'un Référendum au Sahara Occidental" — United Nations Mission for the organization of a Referendum in Western Sahara.-Purpose of the mission:MINURSO...

,
MONUC,
NAM

Non-Aligned Movement

The Non-Aligned Movement is a group of states considering themselves not aligned formally with or against any major power bloc. As of 2011, the movement had 120 members and 17 observer countries...

,
OPCW,
UN

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

,
UNAMSIL

United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone

The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone was a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone from 1999 to 2005. It was created by the United Nations Security Council in October 1999 to help with the implementation of the Lomé Peace Accord, an agreement intended to end the Sierra Leonean...

,
UNCTAD

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development was established in 1964 as a permanent intergovernmental body. It is the principal organ of the United Nations General Assembly dealing with trade, investment, and development issues....

,
UNESCO

UNESCO

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

,
UNIDO

United Nations Industrial Development Organization

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization , French/Spanish acronym ONUDI, is a specialized agency in the United Nations system, headquartered in Vienna, Austria...

,
UNIKOM,
UNMEE,
UNMIBH

United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international organization formed under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1035 on 21 December 1995. It completed its mandate on 31 December 2002, when it was succeeded by the European Union Police Mission in Bosnia and...

,
UNMIK

United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo

The United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo or UNMIK is the interim civilian administration in Kosovo, under the authority of the United Nations. The mission was established on 10 June 1999 by Security Council Resolution 1244...

,
UNMISET,
UNMOP

United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka

UN Mission of Observers in Prevlaka was established on 15 January 1996 in Security Council Resolution 1038 as a peacekeeping mission to monitor the demilitarization of the disputed Prevlaka peninsula by carrying out daily foot and vehicle patrols on both sides of the border between Croatia and...

,
UNU

UNU

UNU or Unu can refer to:* United Nations University* University of Nottingham Union, an obsolete title of the University of Nottingham Students' Union* Unnilunium , another name for the chemical element 101, Mendelevium...

,
UPU

Universal Postal Union

The Universal Postal Union is an international organization that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system. The UPU contains four bodies consisting of the Congress, the Council of Administration , the Postal Operations Council and the...

,
WCO,
WHO

World Health Organization

The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...

,
WIPO

World Intellectual Property Organization

The World Intellectual Property Organization is one of the 17 specialized agencies of the United Nations. WIPO was created in 1967 "to encourage creative activity, to promote the protection of intellectual property throughout the world"....

,
WMO

World Meteorological Organization

The World Meteorological Organization is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 189 Member States and Territories. It originated from the International Meteorological Organization , which was founded in 1873...

,
WToO

World Tourism Organization

The World Tourism Organization , based in Madrid, Spain, is a United Nations agency dealing with questions relating to tourism. It compiles the World Tourism rankings. The World Tourism Organization is a significant global body, concerned with the collection and collation of statistical information...

,
WTrO

World Trade Organization

The World Trade Organization is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on January 1, 1995 under the Marrakech Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade , which commenced in 1948...

External links

News

Others

Kenya Referendum (Full text of book at link.)
Strengthening U.S. Ties With Kenya Michael Johns, Heritage Foundation, April 24, 1990

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Executive branch

Legislative branch

Judicial branch

Administrative divisions

Political conditions

International organization participation

Further reading

External links