Kenya

Though Kenya is the safari capital of the world and the business hub of East Africa, the majority of its 40 million-plus inhabitants are subsistence farmers and pastoralists. Nairobi and Mombasa have fibre-optic cables: the talk of the town is the stock market or tea auction. But most Kenyans live in the countryside of savannah and bush, almost half on less than a dollar a day.

Home to the earliest known hominids – ancestors of homo sapiens from up to two million years ago – Kenya remains one of Africa’s great crossroads, linking the Nile, Sahara and Niger-Congo basins to the great trading routes of the Indian Ocean. After more than one millennium, merchants are still circumnavigating the Indian Ocean on lateen-sailed dhows, bringing spices, silks and porcelain from Madagascar, the Persian Gulf, India and China to island sultanates such as Mombasa, Lamu and Tanzania’s Zanzibar, where coconuts, ivory and mangrove poles were traditional exports from Kenya. An emperor in Ming China even received a giraffe.

Ceded to Britain at the 1885 Berlin Conference, Kenya celebrated its 50th anniversary of independence in 2013. It has a thriving economy held back by corruption and great inequality, making it vital that artisans receive decent money for their products. Kenya is renowned for its domestic crafts, with delicate baskets and ornate beaded stools still featuring in everyday life.

Mount Kenya, Kenya. Photo courtesy of Miles Bredin.

Kenya

Products in this Country

Black & Grey Colour Block Basket - Large

Black Colour Block Basket - Large

Black Colour Block Basket - Medium

Black Sisal Bag - Kenya

Black Striped Basket - Large

Black Striped Runner - Kenya

Blue & Purple Striped Basket - Large

Blue Colour Block Basket

Blue Sisal Bag - Kenya

Blue Striped Runner - Kenya

Chainmail Earrings - Kenya

Emerald Basket with Peach Stripes - Kenya

Green Colour Block Basket - Large

Green Colour Block Basket - Medium

Grey Colour Block Basket - Large

Grey Colour Block Basket - Medium

Grey Striped Basket - Large

Kimeta Hoop Earrings - Kenya

Large Blue & Grey Colour Block Basket - Kenya

Light Blue Striped Basket - Medium

Navy Colour Block Basket

Pink Colour Block Basket - Large

Pink Colour Block Basket - Medium

Purple and Pink Striped Satchel - Medium

Royal Blue Striped Basket - Medium

Solid black basket - Medium

Solid black basket - Small

Solid blue basket - Medium

Solid blue basket - Small

Solid grey basket - Medium

Solid grey basket - Small

Spear Bead Necklace - Kenya

Yellow & Pink Striped Basket - Large

Yellow Colour Block Basket - Large

Yellow Colour Block Basket - Medium

Yellow Striped Runner - Kenya

Zawadi Triple Charm Necklace - Kenya

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