(Ecofin Agency) - In Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari has restructured the board of directors for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

According to a statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Maikanti Kacalla Baru (photo) will replace Emmanuel Kachikwu as the new Group Managing Director of NNPC while the latter will remain on the board as chairman, Reuters reports.

Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu is also the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources. He was appointed as the Group Managing Director of NNPC in August, 2015. He is the immediate past President of the OPEC Conference with a tenure that expired in January 2016.

Buhari also approved his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, as a member of the board. Others members are the Permanent Secretaries of the Ministry of Finance. They include; Thomas M.A John, Pius O. Akinyelure, Tajuddeen Umar, Mallam Mohammed Lawal, and Mallam Yusuf Lawal.

The President in his statement advised the new board to make sure that they successfully deliver the mandate of the state oil company, “and serve the nation by upholding the public trust placed on them in managing this critical national asset.”

Anita Fatunji