Oil and Gas Minister Mohamed Aoun has participated in the OPEC ministers' meeting to discuss the appointment of a new secretary-general for the organization.

Minister Aoun joined the meeting via the closed circuit, the ministry's media office said, confirming that the group agreed to assign Haitham al-Ghais, a former Kuwaiti governor of OPEC, to succeed Nigeria's Mohammad Barkindo.

Al-Ghais will occupy the post for a period of three years, starting on Aug. 1.

Libya had assumed this position through its representative Abdullah Al-Badri, a senior Libyan oil expert. Al-Badri served as OPEC's secretary-general from 2007 to 2016, which was the longest period in the history of the organization.

Economy