Kenyan population rises to 47.6m, census finds

NAIROBI, Kenya - Kenya on Monday announced the results of a national census carried out in August, which indicated the country's population stood at 47.6 million, up from 37.7 million in 2009.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said the 2019 Kenya population and housing census results will guide policy formulation and distribution of resources in the country.

"The numbers released today will go a long way in guiding the successful planning and implementation of government development initiatives, including the Big Four Agenda, for the benefit of all Kenyans," Kenyatta said.

In its eighth such national exercise since Kenya gained independence from Britain, the authorities gathered biometric information on citizens alongside critical information such as household income, levels of education, employment and health.

Kenyatta said that timely release of census results will facilitate evidence-based planning as the government hastens implementation of a socioeconomic transformation agenda.

"These results now provide us with a unique opportunity to realign our development strategies, policies and programs," he said.

He said state agencies will utilize census results to facilitate allocation of resources toward programs that uplift living standards.

The results indicated that out of the 47,564,296 people that were counted, 23,548,056 were male, 24,014,716 were female and 1,524 were intersex. The statistics recorded the number of intersex people for the first time.

However, the overall population growth rate declined from 2.9 percent in 2009 to 2.2 percent in 2019 while the average household size declined from 4.2 people in 2009 to 3.9 people in 2019.

Xinhua