Kenya was saved from the abyss by a shotgun marriage between the country’s ethnic Kikuyu president, Mwai Kibaki, and his Luo challenger, Raila Odinga, who was given the post of prime minister. The power-sharing government, fostered by former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the Western powers, stabilized the country and gave Kenyans hope in a tough year that has seen food and fuel prices skyrocket and drought plague the north.