Abdou Sidikou was a Niger

Niger

Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...

ien politician and diplomat. Sidikou was the Foreign Minister of Niger from 1967-1970 under Hamani Diori

Hamani Diori

Hamani Diori was the first President of the Republic of Niger. He was appointed to that office in 1960, when Niger gained independence.- Youth :...

.

Early life

Abdou—his surname—was born in Kouré, Niger

Kouré, Niger

Kouré is a rural community located east of Niamey, the capital of Niger. The town lies on both sides of the road from Niamey to Dallol Bosso.Kouri is best known for West African Giraffes , endemic subspecies of West Africa....

 in 1927. Under French colonial rule he was son of an appointed local chief, or Chef du Canton, educated at the elite École normale supérieure William Ponty

École normale supérieure William Ponty

École William Ponty was a government teachers' college in what is now Senegal. The school is now in Kolda, Senegal, where it is currently known as École de formation d’instituteurs William Ponty. It is associated with the French university IUFM at Livry-Gargan.-Notable alumni:Many of the school's...

 in Dakar

Dakar

Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...

 and later studied Medicine at the Paris Faculty of Medicine, graduating in 1956, and working first at the Hospital of the Seine  in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, and then becoming chief Pharmacist

Pharmacist

Pharmacists are allied health professionals who practice in pharmacy, the field of health sciences focusing on safe and effective medication use...

 at National Hospital (Niamey) 

Government career

In 1959, Abdou was appointed Cabinet director to Niger's first Minister of Health Diallo Boubakar, and in 1962 was appointed Ambassador of Niger to the United States, Canada, and the United Nations. In 1964 he moved to Germany, where he was Niger's Ambassador to West Germany

West Germany

West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....

, Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

, the Benelux

Benelux

The Benelux is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring countries, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. These countries are located in northwestern Europe between France and Germany...

 and Scandinavian

Scandinavia

Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...

 nations, and the European Economic Community

European Economic Community

The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...

. He became Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Niamey

Niamey

-Population:While Niamey's population has grown steadily since independence, the droughts of the early 1970s and 1980s, along with the economic crisis of the early 1980s, have propelled an exodus of rural inhabitants to Niger's largest city...

, and on 14 April 1967, took over the ministry from President Hamani Diori

Hamani Diori

Hamani Diori was the first President of the Republic of Niger. He was appointed to that office in 1960, when Niger gained independence.- Youth :...

. Due to poor health, he was appointed as "Secretary of State to the President" in January 1970, at that time a cabinet level post. He died 26 July 1973.