H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Sulman Al-Khalifa is the Prime Minister of Bahrain, a position he has held since 1971, making him the longest serving Prime Minister in the world. Born in Bahrain in 1935, he became a member of the Education Council in 1956 and was quickly promoted to Chairman a year later,  serving in this position until 1960. He was then appointed Director of the Finance Department, a role he held for six years, whilst also acting as Director of Finance and President of the Electricity Board, Chairman of Manama Municipality and Head of the Bahrain Monetary Council. His many years of experience in diverse  sections of Bahrain’s government led to him being appointed Chairman of the Joint Committee for Economic and Financial Studies in 1967. In 1970 he was elected Head of the State Council and the following year he was chosen to become Prime Minister. He remains Prime Minister today, and over the course of his career he has been granted many accolades and awards including the Gold Mercury International Award, as well as the Order of Khalifa and the Grand Cordon of the Orders of the Renaissance.