UNE LEGISLATION PROTECTRICE, LA POLITIQUE ET LA PRATIQQUE DE LA GESTION DU PATRIMOINE ARCHEOLOGIQUE AU KENYA

The study looked at the protective legislation, policy and practice of archaeological heritage management in Kenya. The seriousness of the demise of archaeological heritage in the world in general and, Africa in particular is in no doubt. Archaeological heritage is thought to be endangered on the continent and the "crisis" in Africa, whether enunciated in terms of sheer decay or general destruction in the name of development, theft or looting, is becoming common place throughout the continent. Literature was reviewed on the concept of heritage management, history of archaeological heritage management, legal protection, policy and institutional framework for heritage management in the country. In its statement of the problem, the study examined the inter-phase between protection legislation, policy and practice of AHM in Kenya was done through an examination of the National Museums and Heritage Act 2006, and the National Culture and Heritage Policy 2009 in addressing the challenges faced in the implementation process. The study also evaluated various international Charters for culture and heritage management. The overall objective of the study was established by looking at the role of the legal framework, the practice, policy reforms and recommendation on how Archaeological Heritage Management in Kenya can be improved in Nairobi National Museum (Central Region), Kisumu Museum (Western region), Fort Jesus Museum (Eastern Region) and Thimlich Ohinga (Western Region). This was done through a SWOT analysis of the four sites under study. The study looked at the question of the research in which it established the role of legal and policy reforms played in streamlining the management of Archaeological Heritage in Kenya. Also, the study covered AHM practices and how they affect the management of various museums and heritage sites in the country. This was done in reference to the four sites under study. The study adopted the Adaptive theory in its theoretical framework and has drawn particular attention in resource management. Heritage studies, are trandisciplinary embracing ecology, archaeology history, and public policy to mention a few. Therefore, the public policy has been restricted to academic political opinion for evaluating internal and external capacity of NMK without leaving environmental policies leading to good governance of museums hence the this theory suited the study. The research adopted descriptive survey which was very useful because it does not allow the manipulation of the variables and it provided allot of information .During the process of data collection, primary sources such as interview and well structured questionnaire were used in addition to the observation method in all the three categories of the sampling areas which include western central and eastern. Also the research obtained the secondary information from the review of the previous document that included books journal and news papers. This provided essential procedure for the data analysis where SWOT method was used and the data analyzed presented in form of tables, charts and graphs. The study established that all the sites are under NMK management. However, the management of NMK concentrates so much on Nairobi National Museum and its affiliates, and Fort Jesus Museum at the expense of other museums, monuments and sites. Apart from Nairobi National Museum, all the other museums were under-staffed, with poorly managed storage of artefacts, and faced neglect in many areas. Kisumu Museum, despite its status, is under researched and has limited documented information about its historical background, services, and future plan. Comparatively, Thimlich Ohinga site was found to be adequately researched and has a lot of documented information