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Mohammed Barkindo

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Not to be confused with Muhammadu Barkindo.

Mohammed Barkindo
محمد باركينطو
Barkindo in 2017
28th Secretary General of OPEC
In office
1 August 2016 – 5 July 2022
Preceded byAbdallah Salem el-Badri
Succeeded byHaitham al-Ghais
Personal details
Born
Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo

(1959-04-20)20 April 1959
Yola, Nigeria
Died5 July 2022(2022-07-05) (aged 63)
Abuja, Nigeria
Alma mater

Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo pronunciationⓘ (20 April 1959 – 5 July 2022) was a Nigerian politician. From 1 August 2016 until his death, he was the secretary general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. He helped to create the OPEC+ alliance between OPEC members and other oil-producing countries.

Barkindo previously served as acting secretary general in 2006. He led the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation from 2009 to 2010, and headed Nigeria's technical delegation to UN climate negotiations beginning in 1991.

Early life and education

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Barkindo was born on 20 April 1959 in Yola.[1] Barkindo completed his bachelor's degree in political science from Ahmadu Bello University (Zaria, Nigeria) in 1981[1] and his Master of Business Administration degree from Southeastern University (Washington, D.C.) in 1991. Prior to his MBA, he earned a postgraduate diploma in Petroleum Economics from Oxford University in 1988.[2][3]

Career

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Barkindo began his career in 1982 at the Nigerian Mining Corporation (NMC), which he left in 1986 at the level of principal administrative officer. Shortly before leaving NMC, he was hired as a special assistant of Rilwanu Lukman, Nigeria’s Minister of Oil and Energy.[4] He remained in this position until 1989, during which he was also the head of the office of the chairman of the board at the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).[5]

After completing his MBA, Barkindo went on to spend much of his career in the NNPC. He was manager of different divisions, including general manager of the London Office. In 2007, he was appointed the coordinator of special projects, which included oversight of all the company’s federal government projects. He served as Group Managing Director (GMD) of NNPC from January 2009 to April 2010.[5]

In 2010, Barkindo moved to Washington, D.C.[6] He was a research fellow at George Mason University from 2014 to 2016.[1]

UN climate change

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From 1991, Barkindo was leader of Nigeria's delegations to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. He was the only Nigerian delegate to attend all the United Nations Climate Change conference meetings from 1995 to 2010. He was elected vice president of the Conference of Parties in 2007, 2008, and 2009.[4]

OPEC

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Barkindo first became one of Nigeria's delegates to OPEC ministerial conferences in 1986. In 1993, he was appointed as Nigeria's representative on the OPEC economic commission board (ECB).[4] He remained on the board until 2008, and as a delegate until 2010. From 2009 to 2010, he was the Nigerian Governor on the OPEC Board of Governors.[1]

In 2006, Barkindo served as the Acting Secretary General of OPEC. In this capacity, he chaired the ECB. In the following year's meeting of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, Barkindo was chair of the OPEC Task Force.[3][7]

Secretary General

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Barkindo meeting with Austrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexander Schallenberg in 2021

At the beginning of June 2016, Barkindo was appointed secretary general of the OPEC for a period of three years. He would take office on 1 August 2016, succeeding the Libyan Abdallah Salem el-Badri, who had been secretary general since 2007.[8] Barkindo was considered a neutral choice. Nigeria was not calling for production regulation to raise prices, and was not directly involved in existing tensions between Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Iran.[9]

In his first remarks about the appointment, Barkindo acknowledged the diplomatic nature of the position, hoping that the members would be willing to "sit down and talk" over policy differences.[10] To this end, he aimed to develop personal rapport with the heads of state in OPEC member countries, particularly Saudi Arabia and Iran.[6] Through discussions with Russia and nine other non-OPEC countries, Barkindo facilitated the formation of an informal alliance called OPEC+. This new alliance, which controlled close to half the global oil production, began collective actions in 2017.[11][6] Barkindo also developed relationships with executives from U.S. oil producers, who traditionally viewed OPEC as a rival.[12] He was appointed for a second term in 2019,[13] and OPEC+ was formalized that same year.[6]

Barkindo continued to attend the UN climate change conferences, which he would address on behalf of OPEC.[14] He also led summits with the European Union in 2020[15] and 2022,[16] and delivered a keynote speech at the 23rd annual World Petroleum Congress in Houston, Texas in late 2021.[17]

Barkindo turned down offers of an extended term, so Haitham al-Ghais of Kuwait was chosen by acclamation as his successor.[18] Barkindo agreed to become a distinguished fellow at the Global Energy Center of the Atlantic Council upon completing his term as Secretary General[19] on 31 July 2022.[6]

Death

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Barkindo died in Abuja on 5 July 2022, at the age of 63.[20] His death was announced by the group managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mele Kyari.[21][22][23]

Honours

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Barkindo was awarded a Doctor of Science honoris causa by the Federal University of Technology Yola in 2010.[24] In 2011, the Lamido of Adamawa bestowed on him the honorific title of Wali.[25]

The Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah International Foundation for Energy and Sustainable Development gave Barkindo a "Lifetime Achievement Award for the Advancement of OPEC" in 2018.[26]

In 2022, Barkindo received the Grand Decoration of Honour in Silver with Sash for Services to the Republic of Austria (Austrian German: Grosse Silberne Ehrenzeichen am Bande für Verdienste um die Republik Österreich) for strengthening ties between OPEC and its host nation Austria.[27]

Posthumously, Mohammed Barkindo became a Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic.[28]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Profile of HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, Secretary General of OPEC" (PDF). OPEC. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Mohammad Barkindo takes office as OPEC Secretary General" (Press release). OPEC. 1 August 2016. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Barkindo CV" (PDF). OPEC. 11 August 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 September 2016. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
  4. ^ a b c Shehu, Idris (6 July 2022). "OBITUARY: Mohammed Barkindo, the political scientist who became a star at OPEC". TheCable. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  5. ^ a b Akpan, Udeme (6 July 2022). "The Man Mohammad Barkindo". Vanguard News. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d e Said, Summer; Faucon, Benoit (6 July 2022). "OPEC Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo Dies". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  7. ^ "15th session of the Commission on Sustainable Development .:. Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform". sustainabledevelopment.un.org. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  8. ^ "Le Nigérian Mohammed Barkindo nommé à la tête de l'OPEP". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2 June 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Pétrole: le Nigérian Mohammed Barkindo nommé à la tête de l'Opep". RFI (in French). 2 June 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  10. ^ "Incoming OPEC Sec-Gen Says Group Intent on Stronger Unity". Reuters. 2 June 2016. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  11. ^ Saadi, Dania (6 July 2022). "OPEC Secretary General Barkindo, who helped forge alliance with Russia, dies". www.spglobal.com. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  12. ^ Smith, Grant; El Wardany, Salma (6 July 2022). "OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo Dies in Nigeria". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  13. ^ Kenney, Nina (12 July 2019). "OPEC secretary general Mohammed Barkindo re-appointed". ALB Legal and Business Issues from Africa. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  14. ^ "OPEC : OPEC Statements to the COP". www.opec.org. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  15. ^ "Joint Press Release - 14th High-Level Meeting of the EU-OPEC Energy Dialogue" (PDF). ec.europa.eu. 27 October 2020.
  16. ^ "Commissioner Simson participates in 15th EU-OPEC Energy Dialogue". ec.europa.eu. 12 April 2022.
  17. ^ "Hasty transition to leave 'scars' on markets: Barkindo – Argus Metals". www.argusmedia.com. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  18. ^ Wang, Herman (3 January 2022). "OPEC elects Kuwait's Haitham al-Ghais as new secretary general". www.spglobal.com. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  19. ^ Dzirutwe, Macdonald (6 July 2022). "Nigeria's Barkindo, OPEC leader and oil diplomat, dies at 63". Reuters. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  20. ^ Asadu, Chinedu; Batrawy, Aya (6 July 2022). "OPEC secretary-general dies, just weeks shy of departure". Associated Press. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  21. ^ "OPEC Secretary General, Mohammed Barkindo is dead". TVC News. 6 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  22. ^ "OPEC Secretary-General, Mohammad Barkindo of Nigeria, is dead". Premium Times. 6 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  23. ^ "'Barkindo may have died of heart attack, not COVID-19'". 9 July 2022.
  24. ^ "Barkindo bags honourary doctorate degree, Dedicates it to staff". Nnpcgroup.com. Archived from the original on 6 June 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  25. ^ Atonko, Ben (24 July 2011). "Adamawa honours Bakindo with 'Wali' title". Daily Trust. Retrieved 8 July 2022 – via allAfrica.
  26. ^ "Alumni - Al-Attiyah Foundation". Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah International Foundation. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  27. ^ "OPEC Secretary General receives special decoration from host country Austria". OPEC. 22 June 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  28. ^ "Full list of 2023 National Honours recipients". The Nation. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
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