Legal information, not legal advice. Every jurisdiction page carries its verification status and sources.

Kenya

Republic of Kenya

Mixed (common law, customary law, Islamic law)Unitary presidential republic with devolved countiesReviewed· 2026-08-03
Capital
Nairobi
Population
55,100,000
Languages
English, Swahili
Currency
KES

Kenya · Constitution

Constitution of Kenya

Approved by referendum in August 2010 after decades of reform effort. Chapter Four's Bill of Rights binds all state organs and applies horizontally between private parties. Chapter Six imposes leadership and integrity duties. Amendment requires either parliamentary supermajorities or a popular initiative and referendum, and the basic structure doctrine was invoked to limit it in the BBI litigation.

The constitutional text

Approved by referendum in August 2010 after decades of reform effort. Chapter Four's Bill of Rights binds all state organs and applies horizontally between private parties. Chapter Six imposes leadership and integrity duties. Amendment requires either parliamentary supermajorities or a popular initiative and referendum, and the basic structure doctrine was invoked to limit it in the BBI litigation.

Separation of powers

Presidential system with no Prime Minister, a bicameral Parliament of National Assembly and Senate, 47 county governments with their own assemblies and executives, and an independent judiciary supervised by the Judicial Service Commission.

Found something out of date on Kenya · Constitution?

Corrections are reviewed against the primary source before anything changes.

Report a correction