Opec secretary general Mohammad Barkindo has died, the group managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum said on Wednesday.
“We lost our esteemed Dr Muhammad Sanusi Barkindo,” Mele Kyari tweeted.
Mr Barkindo, who was 63, died at about 11pm on July 5, Mr Kyari said.
His passing is “a great loss to his immediate family, the NNPC [the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation], our country Nigeria, Opec and the global energy community”, he said.
Mr Barkindo was appointed Opec secretary general in 2016. The role has a three-year tenure and his term was renewed in 2019 until this year.
The second term was due to end this month, with Kuwait's Haitham Al-Ghais, a veteran of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and Kuwait’s Opec governor from 2017 to June 2021, set to take over.
Mr Barkindo was “instrumental in expanding Opec’s historical efforts to support sustainable oil market stability through enhanced dialogue and co-operation with many energy stakeholders, including the landmark DoC [Declaration of Co-operation] since its inception in December 2016”, Opec said in January, when Mr Al-Ghais was appointed.
The DoC led to the 13 Opec member countries teaming up with major non-Opec oil producers, including Russia, to create the Opec+ super group to stabilise the global oil market.
The last few years marked one of the most turbulent times in the history of the oil market, and Mr Barkindo had to work diplomatically to bring the oil producers together.
During his tenure, the group adopted a number of measures to keep markets balanced, with big production cuts enforced during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic as demand for oil plunged.
Opec mourned his passing and said it was a “profound loss to the entire Opec family, the oil industry and the international community”.
Earlier this week, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari had also expressed his nation's gratitude to Mr Barkindo for his efforts as Opec secretary general.
“You have indeed been a worthy ambassador of our country. We are proud of your achievements before and during your appointment at Opec, and the proud legacies you will leave behind,” Mr Buhari said.
“Your time in charge of the affairs of Opec has been a very challenging one for the global oil industry. Oil producers were finding it difficult to come together to address challenges that were crippling the oil market.
“Not long after, the world was faced with the Covid-19 pandemic that sent crude prices spiralling down at an alarming rate. You showed incredible leadership to rally industry players and pushed through the turbulent times.”
Born in Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria, Mr Barkindo earned a degree in political science from Ahmadu Bello University before taking up further studies at Oxford in the UK and Washington University in the US.
His career began with the Nigerian Mining Corporation in 1982, and he went on to become special assistant to the minister of mines, power and steel in Lagos.
From 1992, Mr Barkindo spent 24 years working in various capacities at the NNPC. His association with Opec began in 1986, when he was the Nigerian delegate to the Opec Ministerial Conferences.
He was married with children.
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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The Orwell Prize for Political Writing
Twelve books were longlisted for The Orwell Prize for Political Writing. The non-fiction works cover various themes from education, gender bias, and the environment to surveillance and political power. Some of the books that made it to the non-fiction longlist include:
- Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War by Tim Bouverie
- Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
- Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
- Follow Me, Akhi: The Online World of British Muslims by Hussein Kesvani
- Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS by Azadeh Moaveni
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
From exhibitions to the battlefield
In 2016, the Shaded Dome was awarded with the 'De Vernufteling' people's choice award, an annual prize by the Dutch Association of Consulting Engineers and the Royal Netherlands Society of Engineers for the most innovative project by a Dutch engineering firm.
It was assigned by the Dutch Ministry of Defence to modify the Shaded Dome to make it suitable for ballistic protection. Royal HaskoningDHV, one of the companies which designed the dome, is an independent international engineering and project management consultancy, leading the way in sustainable development and innovation.
It is driving positive change through innovation and technology, helping use resources more efficiently.
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Name: One Good Thing
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Who are the Sacklers?
The Sackler family is a transatlantic dynasty that owns Purdue Pharma, which manufactures and markets OxyContin, one of the drugs at the centre of America's opioids crisis. The family is well known for their generous philanthropy towards the world's top cultural institutions, including Guggenheim Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Tate in Britain, Yale University and the Serpentine Gallery, to name a few. Two branches of the family control Purdue Pharma.
Isaac Sackler and Sophie Greenberg were Jewish immigrants who arrived in New York before the First World War. They had three sons. The first, Arthur, died before OxyContin was invented. The second, Mortimer, who died aged 93 in 2010, was a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. The third, Raymond, died aged 97 in 2017 and was also a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma.
It was Arthur, a psychiatrist and pharmaceutical marketeer, who started the family business dynasty. He and his brothers bought a small company called Purdue Frederick; among their first products were laxatives and prescription earwax remover.
Arthur's branch of the family has not been involved in Purdue for many years and his daughter, Elizabeth, has spoken out against it, saying the company's role in America's drugs crisis is "morally abhorrent".
The lawsuits that were brought by the attorneys general of New York and Massachussetts named eight Sacklers. This includes Kathe, Mortimer, Richard, Jonathan and Ilene Sackler Lefcourt, who are all the children of either Mortimer or Raymond. Then there's Theresa Sackler, who is Mortimer senior's widow; Beverly, Raymond's widow; and David Sackler, Raymond's grandson.
Members of the Sackler family are rarely seen in public.
'C'mon C'mon'
Director:Mike Mills
Stars:Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, Woody Norman
Rating: 4/5
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Tips for entertaining with ease
· Set the table the night before. It’s a small job but it will make you feel more organised once done.
· As the host, your mood sets the tone. If people arrive to find you red-faced and harried, they’re not going to relax until you do. Take a deep breath and try to exude calm energy.
· Guests tend to turn up thirsty. Fill a big jug with iced water and lemon or lime slices and encourage people to help themselves.
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· The meal certainly doesn’t need to be ready the moment your guests step through the door, but if there’s a nibble or two that can be passed around it will ward off hunger pangs and buy you a bit more time in the kitchen.
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
Saturday 15 January: v Canada
Thursday 20 January: v England
Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly, Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya Shetty, Kai Smith
Vaccine Progress in the Middle East
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
RESULT
RS Leipzig 3
Marcel Sabitzer 10', 21'
Emil Forsberg 87'
Tottenham 0
SPAIN SQUAD
Goalkeepers Simon (Athletic Bilbao), De Gea (Manchester United), Sanchez (Brighton)
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