Journal of Undergraduate Research
Volume 6, Issue 8 - July/August 2005

The Effects of the International Community on the Financial Situations of the Poor in Kenya

Eric Leightman

ABSTRACT

In this paper, I use both ethnographic and quantitative research to examine poverty in Kenya and possible solutions for addressing the poverty. The first half of my research is based on interviews and personal observations during the summer of 2004, where I lived in Kenya to obtain first hand data and experiences on poverty in Kenya. The second half of this paper includes quantitative data to better understand the depths and possible solutions to the poverty Kenya faces. To obtain a clear view on the most efficient way to increase the quality of life for the poor in Kenya, it is necessary to provide insights on the development of the lifestyle of the poor, an international assistance overview, the structure of the government, rural vs. urban issues, the economy, and education. The situation in Kenya is complex, and there is no simple solution. The answer to the crisis must come from assistance in many different areas. Cooperation has to be made between the government and international institutions, and more funding must be given to Kenya’s economic recovery program. Additionally, if America follows through on its commitment of .7% GDP to developing nations, Kenya will have enough means to raise all of its citizens out of extreme poverty.

Photo 1. Child in Kenya

INTRODUCTION

Kenya is a country with many problems and many opportunities. Although the country is poor and filled with corruption, the government has been a relatively peaceful authority, as opposed to the many war-lords and civil wars around neighboring nations. Kenya is a prime example of the sub-Saharan African countries that have been decimated by poverty and AIDS. The country has grown poorer in the past two decades while much of the rest of the world has flourished.

There are many challenges to the destitute in Africa, and a brief analysis of a financial spreadsheet will not reveal how to fix this complex problem. There needs to be a comprehensive assessment of the challenges the poor face and then address the best way to handle those problems. This paper explores the lifestyle of the poor in Kenya, and what the average citizen goes through on a regular basis. It also explains the challenges faced by those who live in rural areas as well as the difficulties with education. Additionally, the paper provides a broader perspective on the economic situation of the nation in addition to how the government and the international community view the problem.

The first half of the research is ethnographic in nature, based on interviews and personal observations of these issues while living in Kenya during the summer of 2004. The second half of the paper includes a quantitative analysis of those same issues. The last portion of the paper summarizes the situation and offers conclusions of what can be done to improve the poverty situation in Kenya.

ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH

Introduction / Overview of Ethnographic Research

While in Africa, I visited and worked at several places to get a full view of what the situation is really like. For the extent of my trip, I worked with an organization called the Marianists, whose mission is to assist the poor in Kenya with education, work skills, and spirituality.

Photo 2. Our Lady of Nazareth Primary School

During the month of May, I taught English and a Gospel Living class in Nairobi to students at Our Lady of Nazareth Primary School, located in the middle of a slum called Mkuru Kwa Jenga with 150,000 people. The school has 1,400 students aging from 5-14,
and it serves the poorest and most needy. Our Lady of Nazareth is an oasis from the dirty slum, and all the students laugh, play games, and learn just as much as any other child would in America. As they walk from the school at the end of the day, out the entrance gate and back home towards their slum, the students walk holding hands and with their arms around each other. Even the five-year-olds do the same as they laugh and sing on the way back to their dark dwellings. The curriculum of the school and the country include English and Swahili (the official languages), History, Gospel Living (for Muslims and Christians), Physical Education, Mathematics, and Science.

Photo 3. M.I.R.A.C.L.E. Trade School

From June to July, I traveled out of Kenya to a country called Malawi, the fourth poorest nation in Africa. The Marianists have a project here that caters to the poor in a rural setting. I wanted to live for a time in an area that had wild growth, undeveloped land, and no large commercial base. The majority of the Kenyans dwell in rural areas like the one in Malawi. The Marianists have created a trade school there called M.I.R.A.C.L.E. that develops Malawians ages 16-25. Each student learns a trade like carpentry or cooking, and other emphasis is put on spirituality as well as practical survival like farming land. M.I.R.A.C.L.E. also has a wide-reaching social program that provides necessities for the local community who live in clay huts in the surrounding area. While there, I was given the opportunity to teach one of the Gospel living classes, assist in the social ministry, and do house checks on the students.

Lifestyle of the Poor

Throughout my three-month research in Africa, there was one common theme wherever I went – poverty. There was never one place that was better than the worst part of any American city I have ever been in. In both Nairobi and Mombasa, destitution dominated the surroundings.

Nairobi. Nairobi teems with starvation and unsanitary living conditions. The 3 million + population has been hit with a hideous phenomena of urban sprawl. The large downtown district rises to the skies with skyscrapers and smog, and the outskirts have been torn from their former primitive settings where giraffe and lions used to roam and have been usurped by shantytowns roaming for miles.

These slums were my second home for the month of May. They are so cluttered and muddled that no transportation can regularly drive to the school where I taught; the roads are too rocky and muddy. Each day, I would take a small bus called a matatu from the
Marianist home to Nairobi, then from Nairobi to the slum, and finally trek about twenty-five minutes through the slum to the school. On the walk, I would cross through these slums and observe first-hand some of the worst conditions in the world.

Photo 4. Pollution in river flowing from Nairobi to Mombasa

Photo 5. Children in Marketplace

Photo 6. Child playing in old waste

Most slums are poorly planned; there is usually one main road with markets on both sides of the rocky, dirty street. Homes are farther back. Hundreds of children play outside with no shirt, shoes, and sometimes even no pants. I overheard a Kenyan describe how children age 15 and under makeup over 50% of the nation’s population. There are very few parents who supervise. The children clutter these streets during the day, seemingly with nowhere to go, even during regular school hours. The area in which they roam is filled with blue/green streams of water and all types of trash on the ground. There is no trash management in the slums, so all of the garbage is piled in heaps along the sides of the road and in rivers (see picture). Sometimes the trash is burnt and everyone in the nearby vicinity inhales plastic and other noxious fumes in gaseous form. There were a few times where I would notice children playing in these garbage heaps directly next to vultures and goats. The amused and happy children were digging in the heap with bear hands and stepping on the piles of garbage without shoes.

At the school where I taught, I became friends with a cook named Boaz, who served as my bodyguard as we walked through the slums each day. One weekend, he invited me over to his home, and I got a chance to observe how a typical poor Kenyan lives and what he does to survive. Boaz’s house was a one-room shack without electricity. He, his wife and his two kids all stay with him in the room. A large sheet divides the room into sleeping quarters for Boaz and his wife, and a quasi-living room.

Boaz wakes at 4:30AM every morning to prepare for work. He cooks his children lunch and walks into the local neighborhood market area to catch a matatu. The transport struggles through the early morning traffic heading into a smoggy Nairobi, and he arrives in downtown around six, where he boards another matatu that will take him closer to the slum. At around 6:30, he arrives in the slum and walks twenty-five minutes to Our Lady of Nazareth, the primary school where he cooks. Throughout the day, Boaz sweats in the hot kitchen area making corn and beans for the 1,400 primary school students. After lunch, he cleans the kitchen and prepares for the next day’s meal. At 4:00PM, he is let off and walks back out of the slum to catch a matatu. The same process of catching multiple rides in the downtown Nairobi traffic is repeated, except with more congestion, as rush hour begins at 3:30PM and lasts until 6:30PM. He finally returns home around 5:30 or 6:00. There, he relaxes and has about an hour to kick the soccer ball around with his son, Winston. Boaz works this job Monday through Friday, out of the house from 4:00AM – 5:30PM. On Saturdays and sometimes Sundays, he will work for the Marianists at the Brother Vincent House doing yard work and various activities.

Boaz’s total pay per day is about $2.75, which is a little above the median in Kenya. However, Boaz’s expenses are disheartening. Each day the matatu fare is $1.50. More than half of his assiduously earned income goes directly to the buses because his wife works close to the home and Winston attends school nearby, and Boaz is forced to live far away from the slum. With the remaining $1.25 of income remaining, Boaz buys food for the family that usurps almost all of the income. He also has to pay rent on the room, clothes for his family, and take care of his ailing mother who has no one else to look after her.

Despite these financial setbacks, Boaz has never complained a single time or seemed unhappy since I met him. His demeanor was either joyful or content. He always had a smile on his face and would do any favor for me when I asked. Shockingly, the friendly African did not seem fazed or upset even when he was robbed on a bus one morning on the way to work and had all of his cash taken from him. This is typical of what I observed while in Nairobi and Mombasa. With such destitute conditions, the African outlook is astounding and inspiring.

At the school, children come into an oasis. They play and learn in the same way all children do; I might as well have been in Gainesville, Florida as I twirled the pre-school kids around a carousel on the playground. However, the difference is in the appearance. Too many times, I saw students come in with no shoes or sox. One five-year old girl named Ruth often came in with a smile on her face, but with no shoes and a ripped uniform she wore every day. At lunchtime, she would eat twice as much as all of the other girls even though she was the smallest. I observed that some of the children do not get a chance to eat once they return to the slum for the night.

International Assistance Overview

Photo 7. A cook at Our Lady of Nazareth Primary School disperses UN provided food to children living in the slums of Nairobi

A cook at Our Lady of Nazareth Primary School disperses UN provided food to children living in the slums of Nairobi Kenya has benefited greatly from the assistance of the international community, especially America and Europe. Financial assistance and social programs from the West have spread throughout the city. Education and the business culture from the Western world have also been passed down, bringing up strong leaders for the country. Most of the assistance had seemed to come from religious based organizations or worldwide organizations like the World Bank and the UN. Just driving through the Nairobi, I observed over 30 different organizations whose mission was to assist the Kenyans in some way.

Much of the visible influence stems from a large Christian movement in Kenya. Missionaries from churches throughout the United States have planted themselves throughout the country, especially in the poorer districts of Nairobi. These churches of all denominations have started primary schools, medical programs, given spiritual guidance, and material assistance. Without such a heavy influence, the country might be in significantly worse condition. The poor who came to be educated at the school I taught in, as well as the deprived who obtained an opportunity to learn a trade where I worked in Mombasa, might have been without work in one of the slums if the outreach had not come from the international community, especially we who live in the United States.

The United Nations helps the country in more ways than can be visibly seen, but personally experiencing the aid they give provides a respect of the wide-reaching assistance programs they have throughout the country, and throughout the world. Although there remains much starvation and destitution, the United Nations offers monetary and material aid whenever there is a crisis and has stable food assistance in many places around the country.

Photo 8. At lunch time, between thirty to fifty small children walk from the slums to the Primary School and wait in a line for food to also be given to them.

At Our Lady of Nazareth, the United Nations provides the school with 100 lbs bags of rice, corn, and beans to disperse within the school and also for the children in the slums (pictured above). Teaching in the pre-unit class, I watched as little, shoeless girls and boys scarf down corn pourage and slurp every last drop at the bottom of their plastic bowls. Sometimes, the students who are not able to eat outside the school will want to slurp the bottom of their classmates’ bowls too. At lunch time, between thirty to fifty small children walk from the slums to the Primary School and wait in a line for food to also be given to them. A few times, the cooks allowed me to present the children with the only meal some will get the entire day. Those living in the slum pick up every last corn kernel that falls on the rocky ground; they starve in a way most Americans have never thought of. The assistance of the United Nations, the religious institutions, and the entire international community has been doing tremendous work in Kenya, and they will continue to be a presence for years to come.

Government

One of the first things any tourist will hear as they enter Kenya is how corrupt the government has been for the past decade. The words government and corruption are almost synonymous in the country. Every morning in the paper, there would be at least two to three stories on government fraud. Walking through downtown Nairobi, it screamed in large bold font from all the different newspaper stands and magazine covers. Some of the citizens seemed indifferent about it; some were furious.

One issue that incensed the nation in late July, 2004, centered on the demand for a new Constitution. The president had promised one and had pushed back affirming it several times, and had refused to sign it again because he was unsatisfied with what it contained. Politicians and other civil leaders were enraged and encouraged protests and even riots. As I traveled back from Mombasa to Nairobi to prepare to leave for the United States, our matatu reported that riots were currently taking place in the downtown district that we were headed directly into. On arrival, many streets were closed and the police had used tear-gas, clubs, and hard-pressure hoses to fight off the hundreds of demonstrators and rioters.

Public demonstrations can be very different in Kenya than in America. To make a point, the local citizens will vandalize the city in retribution for the government’s unpopular policies. Additionally, a university student in Nairobi that I had become friends with said she had been given a free ticket by an opposing politician to attend one of the protest rallies in Mombasa. These rallies were banned and canceled by the government because of planned rioting. The student whom I knew joked that the unnamed politician had paid her to riot against the president. It seemed like there was more than a hint of truth to her remark though.

The government and people of Kenya have now been preaching an anti-corruption platform for years, but no one seems to believe it. New stories about government corruption leak out constantly. The newest one involved the Vice President and a K Sh 2 billion passport scandal, which still has not settled. Most of the impressions from the Kenyans appear to be ambivalent over any new scandal; that is all they can expect.

Throughout the downtown district of Nairobi and Mombasa, as well as the vast rural portions of the country, few government agencies served the people. Especially through the countryside, religious or other international assistance centers outnumbered government ones. In the downtown districts, the poor lay on the streets, seemingly receiving no medical or financial assistance, although I could not quantify how many this held true for. The lame have nowhere to go.

The government has not been able to take care of its poor. The custom has always been for the family to make sure its members remain in healthy condition. This has never been a government responsibility, unlike the current norm in most developed nations.

Photo 9. A blind, mendicant mother with children

Walking in the capital, Nairobi, I saw by a begging woman who had no hands and no feet – all four limbs were missing. Other times, there were men with Polio, who were unable to walk, as well as blind, mendicant mothers being led by their children to ask for money (pictured above). I could not help but wonder what services all of these people had been receiving from the government, if any.

Despite all of the problems Kenya has, it possess a tremendous advantage to some of its fellow African countries – peace. The government has inherited a Democracy from England and no longer has had civil wars since the Mau Mau fought for independence from Great Britain. Many of the other nations in Africa continue to be crippled by conflict within the nation. Even as a visitor, I felt relatively safe traveling by myself in the villages of Mombasa or in downtown Nairobi. The government supplies Kenyan police to roam the cities with large machine guns, which made me a little uneasy at first. I met many other tourists in Nairobi who came over to Kenya because they also felt safe. This factor has driven the tourism economy in the country heavily.

Kenya’s government basks in corruption, but at least it is stable and Democratic. There are elections and people can have their say. Many times, I overheard the citizens say that Mwai Kibaki, the current president, has been so corrupt that the people would not vote him back into office -- democracy in action. The news press is also free and unbiased. Every night in Nairobi, the African brothers at the home I stayed would invite me to watch the news with them. Reports focused mostly on the government, principally the president’s daily activities and a scandal that is now infamously known as the Goldberg trial, which involves the ex-president and the illegal export of diamonds. The reports were all objective, and KTN, the local station, presented all material professionally. Despite the failings of the national government, Kenya’s system allows for peace and free speech, two essentials for any nation that will strive to better their country.

The Economy

Observation can explain much about the Kenyan economy that mere statistics cannot. The two large urban centers, Nairobi and Mombasa, stand in stark contrast to the rest of the bucolic nation. In Nairobi, multiple skyscrapers can be seen from miles away. There was a similarity in approaching the capital with its tall towers and viewing Mount Kilamanjaro from a distance.

Any type of work is difficult to find in Kenya, even the low wage hard labor. Kenyans have been migrating from all over the rural parts of the country into the cities in hope of employment. However, when they arrive, they realize work is very difficult to find. To survive, they take refuge in the ever-growing slums where rent is cheap, although the conditions are unsanitary. Many of the unemployed stand in lines hoping to be chosen for a new construction site or some other manual labor.

Although as a whole, Kenya appears as one gigantic society in need of welfare. However, there are large business districts with many wealthy citizens. Nairobi has a stable economy with many large corporations. The wealth disperses unevenly, and it can be seen in any large city. As an American, downtown Nairobi parallels a filthy New York City. Blind ladies and women without hands or feet would sit in a line on the sidewalks hoping to be given some charity while other Kenyans in sharp black suits would swiftly pass by.

As I traveled through the countryside on a bus from Nairobi to Mombasa, it was clear that the poor were the vast majority of the rural population. The bus trip lasted around five hours, and there were no large cities, only villages. Small clay huts and homes made from red clay bricks were the only dwellings I could make out.

One of the attributes that highlight the gap between rich and poor are the different sections of town. About 15 miles from the central business district heading north, a vast, upscale residential portion of the city tucks itself away from the lower and middle classes. However, I think it is important to note that in every large city, there are always divisions between rich and poor. A Kenyan could go to New York or Chicago and report the same thoughts. Kenya may be exaggerated compared to America, and the statistics described later show this.

Education

Throughout Kenya, I was fortunate to observe the educational systems in detail for the entire extent of my stay. I taught at one private school in the Mkuru Kwa Jenga slum of Nairobi and visited two other public schools while in Mombasa to get an estimate of what a normal educational experience is like in the bigger cities of Kenya. The rural areas of Kenyan schooling are less adequate than what is reported in the following.

While in Mombasa, I was informed that just recently the government had open up free primary education in the public schools to all Kenyans. Primary education is the equivalent of Kindergarten through grade eight in the United States. Seeing this in action was fascinating because of the dire conditions in most areas. Although this was a major step towards progress in the development of the society and overall a positive resolution, there were a few challenges I observed.

The first challenge was the overcrowded of the schools. There were too many children enrolled, and the schools were grossly overloaded. As I walked into the Kadija Primary School in Mombasa and met the principal, he warned me that the schools were congested and braced me for what I was about to see. Some of the classes had over one hundred students in one classroom measuring about forty feet by twenty-five feet. Many of them had to sit on the hard concrete slab floor due to lack of space and lack of desks. They all shared textbooks, usually at a ratio of 3:1.

The most impressive experience at the public schools was to see how respectful and well-behaved all the students were. There was not one such thing as a bully or sarcastic troublemaker. As I walked into one of the Kadija classrooms, the students were silent and listening to their teacher even without having what Americans would call necessities needed to gain knowledge. They were excited to learn.

The second challenge of the free primary education is that it is not truly free. Most of the schools charge a minimal admission fee for uniforms, books, and the other necessities that are needed, such as black shoes and pencils. This totals around 700 Kenyan Shillings, or $8.75 U.S. currency. This may not sound like a large sum of money to pay for a whole school year, but many of the families living in poor areas do not have enough to afford that. In the area that I stayed in Mombasa called Bombolooloo, the majority of the children did not attend school for this reason alone. The parent(s) make as little as $1 a day, and many do not work at all because jobs are scarce.

Everyday, I would walk from my home on a dirt side-road in the meager villages to get to my job at the Marianist Development Project. There was never a time that I passed by that I did not see some children playing in a group along the street. Even during regular school hours, the children would still be out playing in the dirt or trying to throw rocks at the mango trees for some food. I got to know these children very well, and each day I would try to buy a loaf of bread for 25 Shillings and share with the children. In seeking to find out why they were not in school, they replied that their parents did not have enough money to pay for a uniform. I investigated further and spoke with the parents of the children through a translator. They also replied with the same reason. They did not have even five dollars in Kenyan currency to put their children in schools. Although these problems only affect the poorest, the country needs to do better at incorporating all of the children into the public school systems. Since the free primary education law, the situation has improved greatly, but more still needs to be done.

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS

The Poor in Kenya

The World Bank defines extreme poverty as living off of less than $1 a day, not being able to meet the basic needs for survival. This category of people constantly has hunger pains, cannot get health care, lacks safe drinking water and sanitation, and cannot afford education (Sachs, 47). The appalling statistics in Kenya show that over 56% of the country lives in this horrific poverty (Kenya Maps). Despite some improvements over the past twenty years, the situation is still grave. Progress has actually been in a decline; a higher percentage of Kenyans today live in poverty than thirty-eight years ago when the country gained independence (Munene).
The nation and its citizens are young. The average Kenyan is seventeen and a half years old, and this number is slightly increasing, as with most emerging countries because of health advances and decline in fertility (Munene).

The figure below from the Central Bureau of Statistics in Kenya shows the population pyramid of the nation. The wide base at the bottom demonstrates that half of the nation is under 20 years old. This can be an advantage to Kenya if it can educate its youth and instill the nation with democratic principles. The country also does not have to carry the burden of supporting an elderly population that is not in the work force.

Figure 1. Population Pyramid.

The average citizen lives in what is known in America as a slum. In order to have an idea of what most slum living conditions are like, quantitative data can only go so far. The following will give some factual information about the living conditions, but it is beneficial to see the pictures and narrative in the earlier ethnographic research section of this paper. From the 2003 NHDS table at the end of this section, only 16% of all Kenyans live with electricity. The majority of the country lives in rural areas, and just 5% have electricity. 62% of all flooring is compiled of earth, mud, dung, and sand. There have not been any improvements since last survey of 1999 (Munene).

69% of all homes have corrugated iron roofs, and 22% have thatched roofs. The pictures below show iron sheet roofs in the Nairobi Mkuru Kwa Jenga slums and a thatched straw roof in the African rural settings. The average number of people sleeping in one room is 2.6 for whole country. It is not uncommon to have four people in a small 10 X 6 room that includes a kitchen.

Photo 10. Iron sheet roofs in the Nairobi Mkuru Kwa Jenga slums

Photo 10. Thatched straw roof in the African rural settings

In most areas, there is no central waste system, resulting in trash and sewage staying on-site. Many toilet facilities are simply deep holes dug into the ground, which are covered up periodically. However, garbage is too prevalent to excavate the ground for all litter, and it is usually left outside for weeks and burnt. 54% of Kenyans dump trash to be burnt in street or compound. As noted earlier, sometimes the trash is burnt directly on the street/walkway, and noxious odors are inhaled by everyone close by.
Other lifestyle factors include that less than 2% of the country has a television, 74% get information by radio, and less than 5% of the country has a refrigerator. Shockingly, the infant mortality rate was 12.2% in 2002. The number jolted from 99/1,000 to 122/1,000 in a twelve-year span, while many other countries’ mortality rates are decreasing (Poverty on the Rise).

To understand how severe the situation is, Kenya has been compared with other countries of the world. When compared with other developing nations on many of the factors mentioned above, Kenya is struggling. The latest Human Development Report performed by the United Nations positioned Kenya 148th out of 177 nations. One of the most disappointing figures in the country is the decline of income since 1990. In an era where technology and development are supposed to advance society, the percentage of Kenyans living below one dollar each day rose a full 7%. The statistic was at 55.4% as of 2002, and 56% today. 17.1 million more people live below the poverty line now (EIU).

The situation is desperate for many families in Kenya. People constantly die from starvation, malnutrition, and disease. The country is simply not able to provide for the well being of all of its citizens, and the following sections of the paper will explain how it receives assistance, and what is being done to improve Kenya and the poor in the country.

 

International Assistance Overview

Throughout history, there have been different views on international assistance to impoverished countries. Today, a common mainstream misconception is that third world countries are poor because of laziness or subordinate mind power. However, the correct outlook on the crises is that not enough assistance is being given; the Kenyans along with much of the poor countries of the world are left without an opportunity. Jeffery Sachs, the director of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, stated, “It is our task to help them onto the ladder of development, to give them at least a foothold on the bottom rung, from which they can then proceed to climb on their own” (45). The relationship has to be one of cooperation from the international community as well as poor nations like Kenya working together.

The international community has major control over Kenya’s policies and is trying to steer the country toward stabilization and low poverty with development funding as Kenya adheres to strict, specific requirements. If Kenya is able to comply with these targets, the country will benefit in all of the following areas this paper references. Aid is focused on reducing poverty, and will help the government to curb its corrupt tendencies, ease burdensome financial situations, help the poor in rural and urban areas in separate ways, and give donations to continue improving education.

The largest of the international assistance opportunities come from the United Nations, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. They are neutral international organizations comprised of most of the world’s leading nations. The UN has recently developed Millennium Development Goals, which are objectives that focus on halving poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination by 2015.

The lure of international money has had a profound effect on Kenya, as well as many other developing nations, to administer its government better. This is the goal of the UN and IMF. In 2003, a joint statement made by the UN urged, “I would like to underline the importance of center staging the Millennium Development Goals and mainstreaming them into the national framework.” Both the UN and IMF hope to bring its advice and assistance into the heart of each country.

Recently, Kenya has aligned itself with these policies in hope of working toward improving itself through the assistance of the UN. Officially, Kenya is now making the Millennium Development Goals the framework for nationwide planning. (Kenya Puts Millennium). As of last July, the government expected to receive over $630 million in donor funding, giving an extra 10% to its budget expenses (EIU).

Poverty Reduction Growth Facility. Kenya has been chosen as one out of eight countries in the world to participate in a poverty reduction growth facility. These are test markets for the UN and IMF to explore the best ways to end world poverty, and Kenya has been given the opportunity to receive at least $250 million in this project. There are many conditions demanded by the IMF. Since this paper contains a major focus on the financial aspects of Kenya, the following are the major portions of the country’s economic obligations under the new poverty reduction and growth facility:

1. The complete elimination of domestic borrowing within three years
   
2. A reduction of the public wage bill, probably by major retrenchment
   
3. The redirection of spending towards poverty alleviation
   
4. The strengthening of the financial sector, and a revision of banking legislation
   
5. The liquidation or privatization of state-owned enterprises
   
6. A revision of the investment code
   
7. Ongoing trade liberalization
   
8. The taking of further steps towards improved governance
   
9. The reform of the labor market;
   
10. The updating of the Companies Act and other commercial legislation (EIU).

This Poverty Reduction Growth Facility has been effective from November 2003 and will continue through 2006, until it will be reviewed by the United Nations.

This approach to directing Kenya and other countries in poverty tries to provide the correct balance of donor support, national public actions, and necessities to meet the UN’s Millennium Development Goals by 2015. The assistance given to Kenya will be in the form of low interest loans. The interest rate levied on PRGF loans is 0.5 percent, and loans are to be repaid over a period of 5_–10 years (IMF).

Millennium Development Goals. The United Nations has pledged to reduce by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day as well as halve the percentage of people who suffer from hunger. This goal is for Kenya, as well as the entire world, and the UN will assist countries that make objective efforts working toward this goal.

In late 2003, in response to the peaceful shift of power in Kenya, donors pledged more money for the development of the country. After the IMF gave their approval to the country’s economic recovery strategy and agreed to lend, other lenders put faith in Kenya too. During a Consultative Group for Kenya (CGK) meeting, pledges of US$4.1 billion were made over three years to support the government's economic recovery strategy. The most noteworthy fact about these funds was that 60% of it came in the form of a non-repayable grant, while the rest would be in the form of a loan. Support from the international community is forecast to rise from 6.5% of GDP in 2004 to 10% of GDP in 2006.

One last advantage the World Bank and IMF offer is debt rescheduling. The Paris Club of official creditors agreed to renew $350 million of the $484 million due for repayment between 2004 and 2006. The Paris Club accounted for thirty-one percent of Kenya’s debt, or $1.6 billion out of 5.2 billion. The World Bank holds the most debt, with $2.5 billion, or 48%. (EIU)

Although the above only takes into consideration economic factors, the standards set by the MDP and IMF ensure that the government is personally taking the necessary steps to see an objective increase other spheres such as education, government, and the lowering of poverty. Without the cooperation of the international community, Kenya would find itself without the capability to progress.

Government

Corruption. The war against corruption may be the single most important struggle Kenya can fight to help its country. Corruption has not only frustrated its citizens and taken money out of the taxes and national GDP, but it also has the disastrous possibility of causing international donors to stop future funding, which is essential to the economy. Without this financial support, Kenya would find it nearly impossible to raise its own funds, and interest rates would soar.

Corruption affects the economy as a double-edged sword. It first takes hard earned money out of the economy and deflates morale. Then, it threatens donor funding, which the country is heavily dependant on. When funding is delayed by international organizations, it inflates the budget deficit, pushing up domestic borrowing interest rates.

Before President Mwai Kibaki took office in 2002, billions of shillings were being misused every year, creating a disastrous situation for the country and especially the poor. At the beginning of Mr. Kibaki’s term, the fight against corruption improved and seemed to be headed in the right direction. This, in turn, increased donors to the country and helped the economic situation in Kenya.

In April of 2003, the legislature passed the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Bill, as well as the Public Officer Ethics Bill to thwart corruption. The government additionally agreed publicly to pursue anyone who was guilty of bribery or pilfering public funds. These were key conditions the IMF and World Bank sent to resume lending. Kibaki has also ordered a commission to investigate the theft of US $1 billion in government money. The hearings have taken place everyday for over one year, and available on public television, much like the O.J. Simpson trial in America. Lastly, President Kibaki replaced about half of the country’s elite corrupt judges, a move that delighted international donors.

Despite what has been significant progress, the 2004 and 2005 years have once again brought cause for concern that President Kibaki’s advancements were superficial. Little substantial progress has been made, and once again, donors are threatening to withhold funding unless changes are made.

Table 3 Corruption Perceptions Index 2003: selected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa
Country	2003 Ranking	2003 Score
Botswana	30	5.7
South Africa	48	4.4
Ghana	70	3.3
Tanzania	92	2.5
Ethiopia	92	2.5
Zimbabwe	106	2.3
Uganda	113	2.2
Kenya	122	1.9
Angola	124	1.8
Nigeria	132	1.4
Transparency International

The Corruption Perceptions Index, an unbiased non-governmental organization called Transparency International, charts how appalling the corruption has become. According to the latest 2003 survey, Kenya is now the 11th most corrupt country in the world.

In 2004, progress further slowed as a K Sh 2 billion scandal emerged that was directly tied to the vice president, and many of the citizens were furious that the scandals continue. In July, the British High Commissioner, Edward Clay, launched tirade on Kenyan officials. Donors have once again threatened that funding will be suspended unless something significant is done. This handling of corruption creates a domino effect. First, the PRGF is granted, which boosted the government’s credibility and investor confidence. It created debt rescheduling with much of its creditors. Additionally, the domino effect can topple the other way if Kenya continues to have a corruption problem.

Figure 2. Article from the Nairobi “Daily Nation”, reporting some of the corruption coming from its country

The Economy

Economic Background of Kenya. The economy of Kenya has been unstable in recent years because of poor management and lack of opportunity. Real GDP grew at just 1.8% in 2003, compared to the 5% needed to keep poverty from continuing to rise (Poverty).

Agriculture is the most significant source of Kenya’s GDP, although this income has been increasing less rapidly every decade. In 2002, it only grew by .7%. Farming and raising cattle account for around 20% of GDP and 15% of wage employment. Agriculture is also the main source of employment; almost half comes from subsistence farming (EIU).

Kenya has been trying to get away from relying on agriculture, but has found it very difficult to develop manufacturing. This creates a problem within the country because most of the workers are small farmers, and improving agricultural practices does not translate directly into more jobs, even if more food is available. Small farmers may be forced to sell their land as more commercial farms cultivate the land with large machines and less human labor. Jobs for the poor may actually decrease. The manufacturing industry may add more jobs to the lower class and unemployed, but most new opportunities will be low-skill, cheap labor.

Capital and Per Capita Income Decreases. Capital and per capita income have decreased each year between 1996 and 2002, causing poverty to rise. As stated above, an estimated 56% of the population lives on less than $1 a day. The causes of this economic decline come from many sources. Over thirty years of limited investment, high borrowing, and rampant corruption have seriously weakened Kenya's ability to grow. However, it is difficult to imagine how the entire country could get poorer over such a long time span.

The reason per capita income and capital decrease is because capital diminishes naturally over time by depreciation. Additional capital is gained when savings are made by households either by personal investment, taxes paid to the government, or investments in other capital (Sachs 247). If savings outweighs depreciation, then there is positive net accumulation of capital. However, if all income goes to consumption and buying the bare necessities to live, there is no gain in capital. This is much like what Boaz has to do, which was discussed in the ethnographic portion of this paper. Depreciation continues, and so does the growth in the population. If everyone in the country is like Boaz, then there is a large drop net capital and a lower income per person each year.

Even if a positive net accumulation of capital is assumed, per capita income will only rise if the growth is larger relative to the growth of the population. This trend will continue to cause more and more poverty in Kenya until savings is large enough to create positive per capita income growth. This cannot be accomplished without external assistance (Sachs 250).

Improvement for Economy - ERSWEC. In order to improve the economy and alleviate poverty, Kibaki’s new government in 2002 created the Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation (ERSWEC). The challenge is to not just stimulate the economy, but to do so in a way so that those in poverty gain more proportionally. The ERSWEC aims at growth of 4.7% over the next two years as opposed to less than 2% between 1990-2002. It hopes to generate 500,000 new jobs within the context of poverty alleviation while raising the investment/GDP ratio from 15% in 2001 to over 23% in 2005. Additionally, the ERSWEC wants to cut the fiscal deficit and keep underlying inflation below 3.5% per year (OECD website). Much of the stipulations for the ERSWEC follow guidelines set by the United Nations’ Millennium Goals.

Kenyan Economy + International Donor Community. These ERSWEC goals have been shaped by what international donors have requested. The government has begun to pay more attention to the issues that disappointed other donors in the past (OECD). Kenya cannot afford to ignore the requests of the international community, as the country now plans on receiving about 10.5% of its total revenue from international grants. This number is expected to increase over the next five years as more international assistance is expected to come through.

Table 4 Government Finances (2004/2005)
(K Sh bn)	Revised Forecast
Total Revenue	289.1
Domestic Revenue	258.9
External Grants	30.2
Total Expenditure	352.5
Recurrent	275.8
Development	76.7
Balance	-63.4
Source: Budget speech; local newspapers; Central Bank of Kenya. (c) Economist Intelligence Unit 2004

In 2001, grants equal to just 3.4% of government revenue were available. In 2005, 11.4% is expected. The ERSWEC hopes to spend more on assisting the poor than on wages and interest payments. As of 2003, the Kenyan government spent three times as much paying off its debt than with social programs (EIU).

When Kenya is able to adhere to the requirements of the UN and IMF, the economy improves. Immediately, more trust is given by the UN and IMF, leading to more low interest loans and development grants to assist the country. Other creditors look to see how much these large institutions trust the nation and use them as a measuring line. Recently in late 2004, after the IMF released more grant money to Kenya, other lending institutions gave Kenya more loans and extended the repayment schedules.

International loans, like IMF lending, allow the Kenyan economy to pay a lower percentage on all borrowing costs. This immediately assists the nation to be more productive, taking on more business opportunities, and have them become more profitable as the costs of their borrowing will be less. Currently, Kenya will continue to see lower interest rates over the next 5-10 years because of increasing international confidence (EIU).

Over the past four years, GDP has averaged less than 1% growth (EIU). There has been a direct relationship between the growth of the economy and the adherence to international policy. As the country elected President Mwai Kibaki on the basis of his anti-corruption platform, the country gained strength. In late December, 2004, as Kibaki declared Kenya would follow the IMF guidelines for the economy, forecasts rose again. The Economic Intelligence Unit predicts that the GDP will grow to 3.5% in 2005, and again to 4% in 2006, as the country adheres more to the UN plan.

Figure 3. Real GDP Growth (Source: IMF and domestic authorities' data: projections based on author's calculations)

How the International Community Assists Kenya and Moves it Forward. The plans created by the government of Kenya are largely related to what international donors desire to see, due to the large assistance that is being offered. When the International Monetary Fund awarded a new Poverty Reduction Growth Facility in 2003, worth $252 million over three years, it enabled Kenya to pursue other sources to fund the country (EIU). After hearing the news, Kenya was able to reschedule its debt with the Paris Club of official creditors, as well as other lenders (EIU). This new funding by the IMF also boosts confidence in the country, causing private investors to place more trust in the country and invest more, which lowers interest and inflation rates. Kenya will be assisted financially toward their goals if it makes an effort towards these steps. As a developing nation, Kenya has been counting on international aid to assist its ailing economy.

What the International Community Requires. Of the 10 Millennium Development Goals stated earlier in Section 2, this section of the paper focuses on the complete elimination of domestic borrowing within three years, the strengthening of the financial sector, and the liquidation of privately owned enterprises.

Elimination of Domestic Debt and Strengthening the Financial Sector. To eliminate domestic debt within the next three years, Kenya must borrow outside its borders and increase its external debt as it has been doing. The country’s debt increased from 21.9% of GDP in 2002 to 25% of GDP in 2003, and went as high as 26.8% in 2004 (EIU). The heavy government borrowing and high demand for credit brings the negative consequence of banks having less incentive to lend to private corporations that would develop the economy.

Figure 4. Total External Debt.

To accomplish this goal, the international community once again has offered assistance, especially the International Monetary Fund’s loan program. Some IMF loans carry interest rate of .5% and are repayable over 10 years with a 5.5-year grace period on principal payments (IMF Welcomes).

The KSh 63.4 billion deficit is currently funded by both domestic and external debt. Although domestic borrowing will be eliminated by 2007, it still compromises over 33% of net borrowing, K Sh 22 billion. External funding is at Sh41.4 billion (EIU).

The elimination of internal borrowing will release capital that local firms can borrow and contribute to the economy. When the government borrows from the banks, it takes away much of the potential capital that could be distributed towards private companies, and thus higher interest rates remain for those companies. The availability and development of local capital is critical as most businesses have almost no chance of obtaining international financing.

Privatization. Lastly, Kenyan economic policy has attempted to privatize institutions, following UN guidelines and the request of the IMF’s poverty reduction growth strategy. In the late 1990s, a major step toward decentralizing the government occurred as the government let Kenya Airways be controlled by a private entity. More recently, many other industries have been privatized, which has brought both positive and negative consequences. Although the concept has been well thought out to let the market become more efficient, the implementation has been flawed, and many of the newer privately owned business are failing. The water sanitation industry had been turned over from the government to a corporation in 2004, and the slums of Nairobi have been without water in March of 2005 to April 2005. The residents must leave the slum and buy water whenever it is needed.

Education

The educational system in Kenya is structured much like the ones of the modern world. Children first attend eight years of primary school, followed by four years of secondary school, and finally the elite will attend a four-year university. Kenya now has 30 training colleges, 3 polytechnics, 5 public and 12 private universities (EIU). Because of the international incentives, Kenya has strived to improve its educational system. In the area of primary education, which the Millennium Development Project has emphasized the most, the government in 2002 made free primary education available for everyone. Primary education covers forms 1-8, similar to the elementary and junior high school in the United States of America. There are no school fees now in Kenya until secondary education. The only requirements are writing pads, which can be bought for 7 shillings, and a uniform.

To strengthen the national educational systems of Kenya, the government decided it would have to spend more on investing in education. In 2002, government spending rose to 8% of GDP. The largest objective difference came with the 5.3% rise in secondary school enrollment, where almost 850,000 went, up from 804,500 one year before. (EUI)

As President Kibaki made free primary education one of the first issues on his agenda in office, the government released KSh 519million (US$7m) to buy extra equipment. The additional annual cost for this expansion is around KSh5bn (US$63m), which does not include the 150% pay raise for teachers.

Photo 12. Kenyan school.

Education already accounts for around 30% of recurrent spending, and to cover these expenses, Kenya is once again counting on the international community to assist them with the goals of educating their population. Commitments have already been given from the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), OPEC and the World Bank totaling US$40m-50m.Although primary education is free, secondary education is relatively expensive when compared to the per capita income of the county. A good secondary school will cost parents around $300 each of the four years their child is in school. As of 2003, only 7.1% of the country has completed secondary school (Menune).

As shown in the figure below, 23% of females and 16% of males have no education at all, and 78% of males and 83% of females have never attended high school. These figures may seem high, but they are constantly decreasing, as the older proportion of the population has less education. As the younger generations come, the percentages of those with an education will rise.

Table 5 Educational attainment of household populations: females Percent distribution of the defacto female household population age six and over by highest level of education attended or completed, according to background characteristics, Kenya 2003
Background Characteristic	No Education	Primary Incomplete	Primary Complete (1)	Secondary Incomplete	Secondary Complete (2)	More than Secondary	Don't Know/ Missing	Total	Number	Median Number of Years
Age
6-9	41.8	57.9	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3	100.0	2,166	0.0
10-14	9.6	88.1	1.2	0.8	0.0	0.0	0.2	100.0	2,566	3.1
15-19	7.8	51.9	18.5	16.7	4.5	0.6	0.0	100.0	1,981	6.5
20-24	8.1	27.4	30.9	9.6	17.4	6.4	0.2	100.0	1,797	7.5
25-29	10.3	29.4	28.6	7.6	14.6	9.2	0.2	100.0	1,462	7.4
30-34	13.0	32.0	22.9	9.2	14.4	7.9	0.5	100.0	1,159	7.2
35-39	14.7	25.3	26.4	11.3	14.3	7.3	0.7	100.0	915	6.5
40-44	25.7	24.5	20.1	9.6	12.0	7.8	0.3	100.0	837	5.9
45-49	33.2	27.5	18.0	7.4	8.2	4.9	0.8	100.0	543	4.0
50-54	40.6	29.4	18.1	2.5	4.5	3.7	1.2	100.0	587	2.4
55-59	57.8	26.5	8.6	1.1	1.5	2.6	1.9	100.0	414	0.0
60-64	73.9	20.9	3.7	0.3	0.5	0.5	0.3	100.0	305	0.0
65+	80.5	16.2	1.8	0.3	0.0	0.2	1.0	100.0	665	0.0
Residence
Urban	13.9	30.3	20.3	9.0	15.2	10.7	0.5	100.0	1,157	7.8
Rural	25.2	48.2	13.6	5.7	5.0	1.7	0.4	100.0	12,316	3.5
Province
Nairobi	10.0	22.9	20.4	8.9	21.8	15.4	0.6	100.0	1,157	7.8
Central	12.0	43.1	20.5	8.2	10.8	5.0	0.5	100.0	2,234	6.1
Coast	37.8	36.7	13.0	3.5	5.8	2.7	0.5	100.0	1,222	2.0
Eastern	21.2	49.2	17.1	4.5	5.6	2.3	0.2	100.0	2,632	3.9
Nyanza	18.3	54.9	12.2	8.7	4.0	1.8	0.2	100.0	2,393	4.0
Rift Valley	28.6	43.4	13.8	5.3	5.8	2.6	0.4	100.0	3,594	3.5
Western	18.2	55.1	12.1	7.9	4.2	1.6	1.0	100.0	1,794	4.0
North Eastern	86.8	11.9	0.5	0.3	0.1	0.2	0.2	100.0	389	0.0
Wealth Quintile
Lowest	43.7	44.9	7.6	2.2	1.0	0.1	0.5	100.0	2,833	0.6
Second	25.9	52.5	12.9	5.6	2.3	0.3	0.4	100.0	3,085	3.2
Middle	22.8	51.3	14.5	6.3	4.3	0.5	0.3	100.0	3,205	3.6
Fourth	14.7	45.0	18.6	8.0	9.9	3.2	0.5	100.0	3,161	5.6
Highest	9.5	29.3	20.5	9.5	17.3	13.3	0.6	100.0	3,131	7.4
Total	22.9	44.6	15.0	6.4	7.1	3.5	0.4	100.0	15,145	4.3
Note: Total includes 16 women whose age was not stated 1- Completed Grade 8 at the primary level 2- Completed form 4 at the secondary level

Statistics show significant improvement over past 20 years, as it is clear that more of the younger generation has completed a secondary education. 89% of children 6-15 are in school, but only 11% of males 21-24 and 4% females are in school. Some of these 21-24 year olds are still not in college, but secondary school. Also, the primary school completion rate is only 44%, well below national goal of 70% and UN target of 80% (Munene). However, these numbers will steadily rise now that free (munene)
education is offered to all citizens. When comparing literacy rates with other countries, Kenya fares well. Its neighbor, Ethiopia, has a literacy rate of just 57.4% of people 15-24 years old, compared to 95% of all Kenyans (Millennium).

Figure 5. Percentage of Males and Females Currently Attending School, by Age (Munene)

Although the education is free, there are still some problems the poor face in entering schools. These problems include: no food, no uniforms or money to purchase the mandatory uniforms, apathetic parents, the students are already are in the workforce to survive, and schools too full. In many public schools, there are over 100 students in one classroom with one teacher, without enough desks or books. Additionally, a Nairobi newspaper recently claimed that an estimated 40% of teachers are infected with HIV. However, this is the beginning of a change in Kenya, and change includes a transitionary period, which is what the country is in the midst of right now.

Figure 7. Article from Nairobi’s Daily Nation, 7/14/2004

CONCLUSIONS

Although poverty has increased in Kenya over the past twenty years, the financial conditions of the poor can be altered and the eventual elimination of poverty is possible. The solution hinges on both Kenya as well as international donors being committed to working together. Both must do their part to rid the nation of the deprived situations discussed in this paper.

In working together, a major portion of the solution is to use Kenya’s ERWEC plan. Kenya and the UN should commit to these goals together, as they are currently striving to do. Currently, the UN and other donors are under-funding this plan compared to what is needed to meet the goals. More development assistance needs to be given by the donors to fund the ERWEC plan, specifically in the following areas:

1. Household emergencies to take care of immediate needs now, as 8 million people die a year from lack of food, many of which live in Kenya
   
2. Budget investments to finance public investments
   
3. Private businesses investment grants (Sachs 242)
   

If assistance is adequate for a sustained period of fifteen years, as estimated by the UN, then many positive things will happen. First, the most immediate needs will be met, and the starving will not go hungry. Additionally, the extra funding into private businesses and government will help to retain more savings and grow capital. Capital will rise with additional savings and investment that can initially come through donor funding. This will push the majority of Kenyans over subsistence levels for the first time. As assistance is sustained and savings begin, the money will accumulate enough to enable the country to make a positive growth in per capita income. Funding will not go to an unending cause; poverty can be broken once and for all (Sachs 249).

In addition to donating funds, the international community should make sure the aid is given in the most efficient way and harmonizing aid in different areas of the country. If a billion dollars is given in one lump sum to the government with no specifications, much of it may go to waste for lack of development strategy planning. Additionally, not all of the funding should be directly given to the economics portion of the government, like financing measures of external debt. Much of the funding should be put towards the education, poverty reduction, government corruption, electricity in rural areas, and clean water in the cities. The money should be given to a stable government that can be trusted, and it should go through the budget and distributed towards the UN approved ERWEC. This way, both Kenya and the UN will be bound together in the donations. If the UN can coordinate efforts and hold the nation accountable, the aid can be given to Kenya in different packages.

An important question is how much aid needs to be given to Kenya and its poor to allow the country to develop. Jeffery Sachs, the president of the UN Millennium Project, estimated what it would take to give the assistance needed to a rural Kenyan village in the Nyanza province of Kenya. To provide fertilizer to boost agriculture, a medical clinic treating malaria and AIDS victims, expanding education and job opportunities, providing power and running water, the cost would only be $70 per person each year. To support the 56% of the population in extreme poverty, this type of aid would need to be given to approximately 18.5 million people. The needed funds to support this opportunity to relieve extreme poverty in Kenya would be $1.293 billion (18.5mil.*$70). This figure compares well with the percentage of the world’s poor. Kenya has around 1.68% of the world’s poverty stricken citizens (33 million*.56)/(1.1 billion), and the UN has called for $80 billion in funds per year (Sachs 296). Kenya’s $1.296 billion is 1.62% of the total money needed for the world’s poor. The country needs a proportionate amount of funds per person as the rest of the world’s poor.

Since Kenya does not have enough to fund this by itself, the difference would have to be made up by international donors, who only gave around (KSH 30 bill or) $375 million last year. To make up this financing gap, more funds need to be given by the rich countries of the world. But where does the international community get these funds, and are they available?

The rhetoric has been there for a decade, but little has been done. According to the Monterrey Consensus, the United States as well as most economically advanced countries have intended to give .7% of GDP towards developing countries, but have consistently fallen significantly short (IMF). Last year, America gave just .15% of GDP, or $15 billion to country development. If The United States alone decided to act according to its commitments, $75 billion would be given each year to the world’s poor in developing countries. This would be enough to meet the funds needed to eradicate extreme poverty.

Kenya’s part is to show it can lower corruption to allow the funds to go where they need to go. For the next international corruption index, Kenya needs to set goals for itself. More accountability programs will come with more technology; computers will assist the disappearance of at least some of the money in the political system. Kenya now has even more incentive to mature into a nation that can govern itself and take care of its poor. With the growing pressure and publicity of the overwhelming poverty, it is probable that Kenya will be eligible to receive a larger number of grants and loans over the next ten years if it shows it is able to stay within the guidelines of the donors and lower corrupton.

On an individual level, there are also opportunities to assist. In addition to writing local representatives requesting Congress to allocate more funds to Africa, each individual can give on a personal level. There are hundreds of agencies that specify education, poverty reduction, health care, job training, etc. Americans have the unique opportunity to be the first nation in history to be able to end world poverty. What are we waiting for?

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REFERENCES

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