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Arabs begin settling coastal areas, over the centuries developing trading stations which facilitated contact with the Arab world, Persia and India.
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Evidence of some of the earliest human tools have been found in Kenya, suggesting that it was the cradle of humanity from which descendents moved out to populate the world.
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December - Special conference of Kanu agrees to introduce a multi-party political system.
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Kenyatta freed and assumes presidency of Kanu.
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Kenyatta dies in office, succeeded by Vice-President Daniel arap Moi.
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Moi appoints Richard Leakey to head government drive against corruption.
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December - Elections. Mwai Kibaki wins a landslide victory, ending Daniel arap Moi's 24-year rule and Kanu's four decades in power.
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November - December - Regional flooding renders thousands homeless. Some 100,000 Somali refugees cut off by floodwaters in the north-east are supplied by air drops.