While absolute poverty in Kenya has declined in recent years, inequality remains high: 46% of the population still lives below the food poverty line.

There have been some signs of improvement: more children are in school, the prevalence of HIV/AIDS has fallen and there is better access to clean water and sanitation. However, it is expected that some of the progress made in recent years will have been negatively affected by the recent political crisis.

Key Facts

Although peaceful now, development efforts in Kenya were subject to big set backs after a disputed general election lead to widespread violence and unrest in the country in 2007.

Because of this and ongoing problems with institutional corruption in Kenya, development efforts still face a number of challenges.

The primary concern rests with the issues of food shortages in Kenya. Currently 46% of Kenyan people are living under the international food poverty line, meaning that their daily dietary needs are not being met. Furthermore, only 61% of Kenyan people have access to clean, safe water.

HIV and AIDS is another major area of concern in the country, with 5.1% of Kenyans between the ages of 15 and 49 thought to have been living with the disease in 2006.

Kenya has a high infant mortality rate, with more than 1 in 10 children dying before the age of five. On average in the UK, only 6 out of every 1000 children die before the age of five.

Another focus for improvement in Kenya is levels of education, with only 86% of children receiving primary school education and significantly less being able to study after the age of 11 years.

Since 2001, DFID (the government’s Department for International Development, who fund Platform2) has spent more than £170 million in Kenya. In the financial year 2007/08, they provided £50 million in assistance. DFID focuses on education, health & HIV/AIDS however they have also responded to a series of humanitarian disasters, including floods, drought, disease and the recent political and ethnic violence.

One main focus for development has been through the United Nations challenge of the Millennium Development Goals.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight international development goals that 189 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organisations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015. They include halving extreme poverty, reducing child mortality rates, fighting disease epidemics such as AIDS, and developing a global partnership for development.