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Ethnicity and Politics in Kenya

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The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity

Abstract

Instrumentalized ethnic identity has been a key variable in the mobilization and molding of Kenyan politics since Britain’s colonial divide and rule policies imposed ethnic and racial dualism that emphasized difference. At independence, the post-colonial elite did not dismantle the structural architecture of ethnic-based politics. Ethnic identity therefore remains the basis for mobilization and structuring of politics in contemporary Kenya. This dominance of ethnic-based politics, though explained variously, is a product of the conflation of political economy-induced interests where elites instrumentalize ethnicity in political mobilization to ensure their own survival and reproduction.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Law and Education (FALE), The University of the South Pacific, Suva, Fiji Islands

    Jacob Mwathi Mati

  2. Society, Work and Politics (SWOP) Institute, The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Jacob Mwathi Mati

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  1. Jacob Mwathi Mati
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Correspondence to Jacob Mwathi Mati .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Socio & Anthro, Rm 309, Univ of Canterbury Dept of Socio & Anthro, Rm 309, Christchurch, New Zealand

    Steven Ratuva

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Political Science, Towson University, Towson, MD, USA

    Joseph Rudolph

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© 2019 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Mati, J.M. (2019). Ethnicity and Politics in Kenya. In: Ratuva, S. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_24-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_24-1

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-13-0242-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-13-0242-8

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