Sir Edward Clay KCMG (born 21 July 1945) is a retired British

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

, formerly a High Commissioner and

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

. During his time as British High Commissioner in Kenya, Sir Edward earned a reputation for his willingness to speak out against

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

at high levels of the Kenyan government. In a speech made in July 2004 to the British Business Association of Kenya, he famously remarked that the "gluttony" of senior figures in the government of President

Mwai Kibaki Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki (15 November 1931 – 21 April 2022) was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013 and is regarded as one of Kenya's founding fathers. He had previously ser ...

was causing them to "vomit all over our shoes". His outspoken views earned him widespread popularity among Kenyan citizens but he became persona non grata with the Kenyan government. More surprisingly, his own (British) government also came to see him as problematic, undermining the distribution of British aid funding to Kenya.''It's Our Turn to Eat: The story of a Kenyan Whistleblower'', Michela Wrong, 2009 He won a scholarship to study at

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...

Career summary

*1968: joined

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * Unit ...

, London *1970: posted to British High Commission, Nairobi *1973: appointed Second (later First) Secretary, British Embassy in Sofia *1975-1979:

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

, London *1979-1982: First Secretary, British Embassy in Budapest *1982-1985: Foreign and Commonwealth Office, London *1993-1997: British High Commissioner to Uganda *1994-1995: Non-resident British ambassador to

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

*1994-1996: Non-resident British ambassador to

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...

*1997-1999: Director, Public Diplomacy and Public Services, FCO, London *1999-2001: British High Commissioner to Cyprus *2001-2005: British High Commissioner to Kenya

Honours

*1994, CMG *2005, Honorary Doctorate of Laws from University of Sunderland

Retirement

Sir Edward is now a Trustee of Leonard Cheshire, a disability organisation, and International Alert, a peacebuilding NGO.

Family

Clay married Anne Stroud in 1969, and they had three daughters.

References

*''Who's Who 2003'' (A. & C. Black, London, 2003) page 415

External links

Kenya tells former envoy Clay he is 'persona non grata'
Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George High Commissioners of the United Kingdom to Cyprus High Commissioners of the United Kingdom to Kenya 1945 births Living people People educated at Pocklington School Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford High Commissioners of the United Kingdom to Uganda Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Rwanda Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Burundi {{UK-diplomat-stub