Professor Jibril Aminu, a distinguished Nigerian diplomat, eminent medical scholar, and former Minister of Education and Petroleum, has passed away in Abuja at the age of 85.
According to the family, the former President of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO), and one-time President of the OPEC Conference, died on Thursday, June 5, 2025, after a prolonged illness.
His funeral prayer will be held at 2:00 p.m. today at the Abuja National Mosque. His body will then be flown to Yola, the Adamawa State capital, and later to his hometown in Song Local Government Area for burial.
Prof. Aminu, a trained cardiologist, earned his medical degree from the University of Ibadan in 1965, where he was recognized as the best graduating student at University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan. He later obtained a PhD in Medicine from the Royal Postgraduate Medical School in London in 1972.
He served Nigeria in numerous high-profile roles, including as the country’s Ambassador to the United States (1999–2003) and as Senator representing Adamawa Central (2003–2011). Earlier, he was appointed as Federal Minister of Education and subsequently Federal Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources between 1989 and 1992.
In 1991, while serving as Petroleum Minister, Prof. Aminu became President of OPEC and also led the OPEC Conference until 1992.
His passing marks the end of an era for a man whose contributions to Nigeria’s medical, educational, and petroleum sectors were both historic and impactful.
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