Transformative Constitutions and Constitutionalism : A New Theory and School of Jurisprudence from the Global South?

The article seeks to interrogate, historicize, and problematize what transformative constitutions and their attendant constitutionalism/jurisprudence are. Some of the critical elements of transformative constitutions are analyzed as well as the development of the jurisprudence that is emerging from these constitutions. In the quest for an answer to the question posed, which is the title of the article, Kenya is used as a case-study. Kenya has had a transformative constitution since it was promulgated on 27 August 2010. Its core elements/pillars of transformation are highlighted in this article. Kenya’s experience with the implementation of this Constitution, particularly with regard to the development of jurisprudence to reflect the objectives and vision of the Constitution will assist in answering the question examined in the article. The question itself is of interest to both the Global South and Global North in the ongoing process of reverse learning.1 The analysis is therefore linked to the global context in the quest for political transformation of which the making of constitutions is an integral part