“Kenya, East Africa, and America” – with African Intelligence Chief Wilson Boinett

Summary

Brigadier General (Ret.) Wilson Boinett joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss Kenyan intelligence. Wilson is the former Director of Kenya’s National Intelligence Service. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• The effect of colonialism on intelligence
• The organization of Kenya’s National Intelligence Service
• Wilson’s role in adapting and reforming Kenyan intelligence 
• The Nairobi bombings and effects on East Africa

Reflections

• Institutional insurgency
• The courage to push for and enact change

*EXTENDED SHOW NOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

Episode Notes

This week on SpyCast, we are thrilled to be joined by our first ever African intelligence chief. Brigadier General (Ret.) Wilson Boinett is the individual credited with transforming Kenya’s National Intelligence Service into the world-class agency it is today. Following a decades long career in the Kenyan Army, Wilson became the first Director of the newly created intelligence agency in 1999. He believed in the possibly of change and the potential for collaboration amongst East African countries and set out to do just that. Tune in to this week’s episode to learn more about his extraordinary career and lessons in leadership. 

This episode is the second in our Spy Chiefs Special series that will run throughout September. Stay tuned in the weeks to come to hear perspectives from Ireland, India, and the first woman to direct an American intelligence organization. 

*EXTENDED SHOW NOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

Quotes of the Week

I was coming in at the time when all those things were happening and the Cold War was over, and the western intelligence did not care very much what Kenya was going to do. So, I had an opportunity to look at this monster called change …. I went to the president, and I said, “I think it is time to change.” And he said, “Go change it.” 

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

*SpyCasts*

• David Petraeus on Ukraine & Intelligence with the former CIA Director & 4* General (2023)
• Spies: The Epic Intelligence War Between East vs. West with Calder Walton (2023) 
• Irregular Warfare & Intelligence with IWC Director Dennis Walters (2023)
• The 75th Anniversary of the CIA with former Director Robert Gates (2022)

*Beginner Resources*

• A Brief History of Kenya, A. Boddy-Evans, ThoughtCo (2020) [Short Article]
• The Late British Empire, History Matters, YouTube (2017) [Ten-minute video]
• What Was the Mau Mau Uprising? Imperial War Museum (n.d.) [Short article]

*EXTENDED SHOW NOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

DEEPER DIVE

Books

• History of Resistance in Kenya, M. wa Kĩnyattĩ (Mau Mau Research Center, 2019)
• Kenya After 50: Reconfiguring Historical, Political, and Policy Milestones, M. M. Kithinji et al. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016) 
• Population, Tradition, and Environmental Control in Colonial Kenya, M. S. Shanguhyia (University of Rochester Press, 2015)
• Kenya: A History Since Independence, C. Hornsby (I.B. Tauris, 2013)

Primary Sources 

• Report of the Accountability Review Boards: Bombings of the US Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, US Department of Justice (1999)
• 5 Fugitives Indicted in Embassy Bombings, J. Mintz, The Washington Post (1998)
• The National Security Intelligence Service Act (1998) 
• Lancaster House Agreement, United Nations Peacemaker (1979)
• Kenya Independence Act (1963)
• Kenyan Independence Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Commonwealth, UK National Archives (1963)
• Mau Mau Violence – Control Measures, CIA (1953) 
• The Situation in Kenya (Mau Mau Uprising), CIA (1952) 
• General Act of the Berlin Conference on West Africa, San Diego State University (1885) 

*EXTENDED SHOW NOTES & FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE*

*Wildcard Resource*

• Take a trip to Nairobi from your couch and explore the National Museums of Kenya through Google Arts & Culture. 
• Explore Kenya’s 7 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Take a Tour of the Nairobi Gallery, or Learn a Bit of Swahili, one of Kenya’s two official languages!