H.E. Dr. Hamed Al-Ghabid

Hamid Al-Ghabid obtained a Doctorate degree from the Sorbonne in Paris in 1988. He occupied senior political positions in the Government of Niger, and was the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1979-1981, Minister of Commerce in 1981-1983 and Minister of Finance in 1983, then Prime Minister of Niger from 1983 to 1988. In 1989, he was appointed the Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

During his tenure as a Secretary General of the OIC, Dr. Al-Ghabid addressed some of the most important challenges facing the Islamic world. His role in supporting social, educational, cultural, political, and economic cooperation between Islamic countries, and in mediating disputes within and between these countries is particularly noteworthy. He is also credited with successfully relocating some 250,000 Bulgarian Muslim refugees to Turkey, and with convincing richer Islamic countries to increase their support to the less previleged communities in the Islamic World. He has also been successful in restoring confidence in the Islamic Cooperation Fund which provides aid to Islamic countries during natural disasters. Dr. Al-Ghabid also founded the Islamic Establishment for Social Studies in Niami, which supports various philanthropic projects in Niger.

A respected African leader with long diplomatic experience, Dr. Al-Ghabid was chosen by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) to represent it as mediator in the Darfur conflict in Sudan.

This biography was written in the year the prize was awarded.