Editing Economy of Kenya (section)

==Labour==
In 2022, Kenya's labour force was estimated to include about 24 million workers. In recent years, much of Kenya's labour force has moved from the countryside to cities such as Nairobi, as Kenya becomes increasingly urbanised.<ref name=cp/>

The labour force participation rate in Kenya has been constant from 1997 to 2010 for both women and men. In 1997, 65% of women were employed in some type of labour and 76% of men were employed. In 2005, 60% of women and 70% of men were in the labour force, increasing slightly to 61% of women and 72% of men in 2010.<ref name="world bank">{{cite web |title=Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate) |url=http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS?page=2 |access-date=11 June 2015 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806135544/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS?page=2 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the past 20 years, many Kenyans have moved away from family farming towards wage labour, small business entrepreneurship, and informal work. In 1989, 4.5 million Kenyans out of a total working population of 7.3M worked on family farms. In 2009, only 6.5M Kenyans out of a total working population of 14.3M worked on family farms. Of these, 3.8M were women and 2.7M were men.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update">[http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/kenya-economic-update-december-2012.pdf Kenya Economic Update: Kenya at work: Energizing the economy and creating jobs.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180219175939/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/kenya-economic-update-december-2012.pdf |date=19 February 2018 }} World Bank. December 2012.</ref>

According to the World Bank 2012 Kenya Economic Update, modern wage jobs include being an "engineer, telecommunication specialist, cut flower worker, teacher, construction worker, housekeepers, professionals, any industrial and manufacturing job, and port and dock workers." In 1989, there were only 1.9M Kenyans employed in wage work. In 2009, this number increased to 5.1M, with 3.4M men and 1.3M women were employed in wage jobs.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update"/>

===Informal economy ("Jua Kali")===
In Kenya, the "Jua Kali" sector is another name for the [[informal economy]], also described as non-farming self-employment.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update" /> Jua Kali is Swahili for "hot sun" and refers to the idea that the workers in the informal economy work under the fierce sun.<ref name=":32">Ronald Hope Sr, Kempe. "Informal economic activity in Kenya: benefits and drawbacks." ''African Geographical Review'' 33.1 (2014): 67-80.</ref> The informal sector consists of legally unrecognised and unregulated self-employment and wage employment. As a result, informal sector employment does not contribute to Kenya's GDP.<ref name=":32" /> Non-farm self-employment has risen from 1989 to 2009.

The World Bank characterises non-farm self-employment to include jobs such as "street vendor, shop owner, dressmaker, assistant, fishmonger, caterer, etc." Non-farm self-employment has risen from a total of 0.9 million workers in 1989 to a total of 2.7 million in 2009. Men make up 1.4 million workers, and women workers number 1.3 million.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update" />

As of 2009, Kenya's informal economy accounts for about 80% of the total employment for the country. Most informal workers are self-employed, with few entrepreneurs employing others. The informal sector contributes economic activity equal to 35% of the total GDP in Kenya, and has its own informal finance structure in the form of [[rotating savings and credit association]]s. This sector provides an income mainly for those in lower socioeconomic groups.<ref name=":32"/>

Drawbacks of the informal economy include the promotion of smuggling and tax evasion and the lack of social and legal protection. Most members of the informal sector have low educational attainment. Rising costs of education and uncertainty about future employment have caused many workers to enter the informal economy, due to lower entry fees as well as shorter and practical training and apprenticeships.<ref name=":2">Barasa, Fred Simiyu, and Eleanor SM Kaabwe. "Fallacies in policy and strategies of skills training for the informal sector: evidence from the jua kali sector in Kenya." ''Journal of education and work'' 14.3 (2001): 329-353.</ref>

===Human capital ===
Kenya has one of the best human capital in Africa. According to the World Bank's 2019 Human Capital Index (HCI), which measured human capital of the next generation, Kenya ranked first in sub-Saharan Africa with an HCI score of 0.52. The index combined several key indicators, such as school enrolment, child survival, quality of learning, healthy growth and adult survival into a single index ranging between 0–1.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Timothy |last=Odinga |date=2020-12-21 |title=Kenya beats sub-Saharan Africa peers in World Bank global human capital index |url=https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/data-hub/kenya-beats-sub-saharan-africa-peers-in-world-bank-global-human-capital-index-2254280 |access-date=2024-04-01 |website=Business Daily |language=en |archive-date=1 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240401153950/https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/data-hub/kenya-beats-sub-saharan-africa-peers-in-world-bank-global-human-capital-index-2254280 |url-status=live }}</ref>