Nizar Al Baharna (

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

: نزار البحارنة) (born 1950) is a Bahraini academic,

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

and politician.

Early life and education

Baharna was born in 1950. He is a graduate of the University of Petroleum and Minerals in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. He received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

there. He also obtained a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Wales in 1979.

Career

He gained the position of the Head of the Engineering Department at Gulf Technical College soon after earning his doctorate. Then, Baharna began to work at the University of Bahrain in different capacities until 1995. The last academic post he held was the vice president for academic programs and scientific studies at the University of Bahrain. After leaving academia he established a consulting firm in Bahrain. He is a founding member of the Al Wefaq National Islamic Society which he left in 2004. However, one year later he rejoined the society. In November 2005 he became deputy chairman of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was appointed minister of state for foreign affairs on 11 December 2006. Baharna, a Shia, remained in the post until February 2011.Al Arabiya article on shuffling of government ministers in Bahrain
/ref> Then he returned to work as chairman at his company, Technology Consulting Group. He is also a visiting scholar researcher at Georgetown University. He is a member of the advisory board of the Iman Foundation. In 2013, Baharna published a book, ''A Universal Human Rights Model''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baharna, Nazar Al 1950 births Living people King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals alumni University of Bahrain faculty Bahraini engineers Bahraini politicians Place of birth missing (living people) Bahraini Shia Muslims Government ministers of Bahrain