A Nigerian, Mohammed Barkindo, has emerged the new Secretary General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries‎ OPEC. His appointment was announced at the organization's meeting at Vienna today June 2nd. Barkindo was the Managing Director of NNPC from 2009 to 2010, and served as acting secretary-general of OPEC in 2006. He replaces Libya’s Abdalla El-Badri, who had completed full terms.

Barkindo was born in Yola, Adamawa state ‎on the 14th of February 1944. He attended Barewa College,Zaria and then Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria where he obtained a Diploma in Law in 1969. Later he attended North London Polytechnic (1973–1975) and St Clements University in the Turks and Caicos Islands (2000–2002).

He worked with the Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Port Authority and the National Freight Company. Joining the Gongola State civil service, he became a Commissioner for Works and later a Commissioner for Animal Health. Barkindo was a director of the National Engineering and Technical Company (1991–1993), chairman of Stirling Civil Engineering Nigeria Limited (1991–2003) and chairman of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (2003–2005)

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