first we have some exciting news we've recently launched a new website URL_TOKEN to provide you with even more content this includes content on our most popular videos exclusive blog articles detailed references including the ones for this video and new infographic maps the link to alt URL_TOKEN is in the description below so how did kenya become east africa's economic powerhouse this begins not just with kenya but the wider east african region for centuries the area's coastline has been a focus of global trade one prized for the trade winds which would transport vessels from ports like mombasa and zanzibar all the way to india attracting arab portuguese and then british traders though it would arguably be the latter who had the greatest impact on the kenya we know today in the late NUMBER_TOKENth century european powers were in a hurry to grab basically anything in africa they deemed as unclaimed territories despite the fact that these territories were very much being claimed by the people who already lived there hmm britain and germany in particular took a keen interest in the region eyeing up both the sultanate of zanzibar which followed the coastline and the east african interior to save their fighting for the NUMBER_TOKENth century britain and germany decided to split the region germany taking the lands roughly equivalent to tanzania and britain modern day kenya and uganda however britain didn't really want full responsibility for the region so decided to allow a company to administer and develop the territory one creatively called the imperial british east africa company in NUMBER_TOKEN one of the company's main aims was to build a railway from the coast all the way to the fertile lands of lake victoria and in the process starting kenya's journey to become the gateway to east africa but after quickly running out of funds and having no real experience the lands were transferred to the british government here kenya was split from uganda to become the east african protectorate in NUMBER_TOKEN and then the colony and protectorate of kenya in NUMBER_TOKEN the colony referring to the interior was the protectorate a NUMBER_TOKEN-mile coastal strip under the sultan of zanzibar for britain kenya provided fertile agriculture cheap labor and a central location for other african colonies complete with natural ports and one of the only railway systems in the region but the colony was largely kept underdeveloped focusing on agricultural exports after a prolonged and brutal struggle for independence kenya emerged as an independent nation in NUMBER_TOKEN finally being able to follow its own economic path something the nation really took to heart becoming a laboratory for economic development where the government proclaimed it would follow a kenyan version of african socialism which focused on three core aims mutual social responsibility adaptability to changing circumstances and avoiding dependency on others for its development something which sounded great in theory though in reality growth was prioritized above virtually everything else a key part of this growth strategy was based on providing local companies effective monopolies which the government achieved through protective trade policies like high tariffs on imports and quotas and for the first couple of decades the system worked fairly well at least when it came to overall growth as kenya grew at an average rate of seven percent per year in furnace though this high growth rate was from a low base but nonetheless
START_SELFPROMO_TOKEN first we have some exciting news we've recently launched a new website URL_TOKEN to provide you with even more content this includes content on our most popular videos exclusive blog articles detailed references including the ones for this video and new infographic maps the link to alt URL_TOKEN is in the description below END_SELFPROMO_TOKEN