Nigeria Assumes Post of Secretary General D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation

Nigeria yesterday assumed the post of Secretary General, D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation in Istanbul Turkey.

As it is the turn of Nigeria to take the helm of affairs of the intergovernmental organisation, Ambassador Isiaka Abdulqadir Imam assumed duty as Secretary General of the D – 8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation, based on the principle of rotation in alphabetic order.

This, it was learnt, is in consonance with article 9.3 of the D – 8 Charter which stipulates that, “the Secretary-General shall be appointed on recommendation by the Council of Ministers by consensus from among the nationals of Member States and approval by the Summit for a non-renewable four-year term in accordance with the principle of rotation in alphabetic order with due consideration for competence, integrity and experience. The Secretary-General will be of the rank of Ambassador in the diplomatic service of the Member State.”

The Developing Eight Organization for Economic Cooperation, founded in 1997, is an intergovernmental organization comprising the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Arab Republic of Egypt, Republic of Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Malaysia, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and Republic of Turkey. The aspiration of the D-8 is to become an economic powerhouse that will promote sustainable development of its Member States to become major actors in the global economic system.

Imam hails from Ilorin, Kwara State. He joined the Nigeria Foreign Service in 1993 after acquiring B.A. (Hons) 2:1 Class (Political Science) in 1985 from American University in Cairo, Egypt. He has served meritoriously in different capacities at our Missions in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), Pretoria (South Africa), Tokyo (Japan), and Brasilia (Brazil) accordingly. He was conferred with the title of Ambassador in-situ by H.E. President Muhammadu Buhari in Council in 2020, as well as approved his nomination as Secretary General of D – 8Organisation for Economic Cooperation in 2021.