The remains of Mohammed Barkindo, the outgoing secretary-general of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), have been buried. His remains were laid to rest on Wednesday in Yola, Adamawa State.
Barkindo, a former group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, died at about 11p.m on Tuesday, a few hours after delivering a speech to oil and gas stakeholders at the ongoing 2022 Nigerian oil and gas conference and exhibition in Abuja, according to the NNPC GMD. After the conference, the OPEC chief also visited President Muhammadu Buhari at the Villa where he was honoured by the Nigerian president.
He was aged 63.
Late Barkindo was appointed OPEC Secretary-General in 2016. He was the fourth Nigerian to hold that position and the 28th person in the role overall.
HIS LIFE AND TIMES
Barkindo, who had an eventful final day on earth, enjoyed a life filled with sterling feats and an impressive career trajectory. He spent 24 years in various capacities at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), working his way from the fringes to the core of the organisation. As his status grew locally, he also became a perennial feature in the Nigerian delegation to OPEC.
Barkindo was born in Yola, the capital of Adamawa state, on April 20, 1959. After his primary and secondary education, he proceeded to earn his first degree in political science at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, at the age of 22.
A year later, he began his career with the Nigerian Mining Corporation (NMC) where he rose to the level of a principal administrative officer before leaving in 1986.
A few months before quitting the NMC, Barkindo had begun working as a special assistant to Rilwanu Lukman, the minister of mines, power and steel and he served in that capacity until 1985 when the military administration of Buhari was terminated. However, Lukman was also appointed minister by the succeeding military junta headed by Ibrahim Babangida, and Barkindo was retained as a special assistant — a position he held till 1990.
Armed with a post-graduate diploma in petroleum economics at Oxford University in 1988 and a master’s in business administration at Washington University three years later, Barkindo began his sojourn with NNPC.
He became the head of international investments for NNPC in 1992. After heading several positions within the corporation, Barkindo was elevated to the position of coordinator of special projects at NNPC in 2007. He oversaw all federal government projects vested in the NNPC from 2007 to 2009.
