{{Short description|Sultan of Sokoto since 2006}} {{Use Nigerian English|date=August 2023}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox royalty | name = Abubakar IV | title = Sarkin Musulmi (Commander of the Faithful) | image = Sa'adu Abubakar -Sultan of Sokoto (3x4 cropped).jpg | caption = Abubakar in 2016 | succession = Sultan of Sokoto | reign = 2 November 2006 – present | predecessor = Muhammadu Maccido | father = Sir Siddiq Abubakar III | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1956|08|24|df=y}} | birth_place = Sokoto, Northern Region,<br>British Nigeria | religion = Sunni Islam | full name = Muhammad Sa'adu Abubakar | regnal name = Muhammadu Sa'ad Abubakar | module = {{Infobox military person | embed = yes | allegiance = {{flag|Nigeria}} | branch = 21px Nigerian Army | service_years = 1977–2006 | rank = 20px Brigadier General }} }}
'''Muhammadu Sa'ad Abubakar''' {{Post-nominals|country=NGA|CFR}} ({{langx|ar|محمد سعد أبو بكر}}) (born 24 August 1956) is the 20th Sultan of Sokoto. <ref name="themuslim500.com">[http://themuslim500.com/profile/saadu-abubakar CFR, mni--sultan-sokoto The Muslim 500: "Amirul Mu’minin Sheikh as Sultan Muhammadu Sa’adu Abubakar"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625122539/http://themuslim500.com/profile/saadu-abubakar--sultan-sokoto |date=25 June 2014 }} retrieved 15 May 2014</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-09-21 |title=The Quintessential Chief Imam of Lagos - Muslim News Nigeria |url=https://muslimnews.com.ng/2018/09/21/the-quintessential-chief-imam-of-lagos/ |access-date=2024-08-22 |website=muslimnews.com.ng |language=en-US}}</ref>
Abubakar is the heir to the two-century-old throne founded by his ancestor, Sheikh Usman Dan Fodio (1754–1817), leader of the Maliki school of Islam and the Qadiri branch of Sufism.<ref name="themuslim500.com" />
== Early life == === Family ===
Sa'adu Abubakar was born on 24 August 1956, in Sokoto. He is the youngest son of the 17th Sultan, Sir Siddiq Abubakar III, who held the Sultanate for over fifty years.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.dawodu.com/paden1.htm |title=The Sokoto Caliphate and its legacies |website=dawodu.com |access-date=2 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304173251/http://dawodu.com/paden1.htm |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>
=== Education ===
Sa'adu Abubakar attended Barewa College in Zaria and proceeded to the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1975, where he was a member of the 18th Regular Course.<ref name="LNG">{{Cite news |last1=Chiama |first1=Paul |title=From Barracks To Royalty: 6 Prominent Ex-Military Officers Now Royal Fathers |url=http://leadership.ng/news/449174/from-barracks-to-royalty-6-prominent-ex-military-officers-now-royal-fathers |newspaper=Leadership|access-date=25 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150725170017/http://leadership.ng/news/449174/from-barracks-to-royalty-6-prominent-ex-military-officers-now-royal-fathers |archive-date=25 July 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>
== Military career ==
Abubakar was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in 1977 and served in the elite Armoured Corps. He headed a presidential security unit of the Armoured Corps that guarded then military ruler, General Ibrahim Babangida in the late 1980s. Abubakar also commanded a battalion of African peacekeepers in Chad during the early 1980s, as part of the Organisation of African Unity's force and was military liaison officer for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in the mid 1990s.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6110800.stm |title=From Nigerian soldier to Sultan of Sokoto |date=2 November 2006 |access-date=2 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140513172525/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/6110800.stm |archive-date=13 May 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>
He was appointed Commanding Officer 241 Recce Battalion, Kaduna in 1993.<ref name="LNG" /> From 1995 to 1999, he was ECOWAS military liaison officer and commanding officer, 231 Tank Battalion (ECOMOG Operations) in Sierra Leone, from 1999 to 2000.<ref name="LNG" /> From 2003 to 2006, he served as Defence Attaché to Pakistan (also accredited for Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan)<ref name="LNG" /> and retired as a brigadier general in 2006.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Profile Of A Sultan As A Young Man |url=https://dailytrust.com/profile-of-a-sultan-as-a-young-man |newspaper=Daily Trust|access-date=6 February 2021}}</ref>
== Sultan of Sokoto == On 2 November 2006, Abubakar ascended the throne following the death of his brother, Muhammadu Maccido, who died on ADC Airlines Flight 53.<ref name="newleaderbbc">{{Cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6109118.stm|title=Nigeria gets new Islamic leader|date=2 November 2006|access-date=2 January 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170909215850/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/6109118.stm|archive-date=9 September 2017}}</ref>
As the Supreme Leader of Muslims in Nigeria, he holds the position of Chief Moonsighting Officer, responsible for determining the official start and end of the Ramadan fast across Nigeria.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Salman |first=Animashaun |date=2024-03-10 |title=JUST IN: Sultan declares Monday first day of Ramadan |url=https://punchng.com/just-in-sultan-declares-monday-first-day-of-ramadan/#:~:text=The%20Sultan%20of%20Sokoto,%20Sa,the%20first%20day%20of%20Ramadan. |access-date=2024-09-20 |newspaper=The Punch|language=en-US}}</ref>
== Titles and honours ==
As the Sultan of Sokoto, Abubakar is the leader of the Qadiriyya sufi order, which is the most important Muslim position in Nigeria and senior to the Emir of Kano, the leader of the most populous Tijaniyya sufi order.<ref>[http://allafrica.com/stories/201411281799.html All Africa: "Nigeria: Updated – Kano Blasts Claim Over 60" By Ismail Mudashir] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150204061850/http://allafrica.com/stories/201411281799.html |date=4 February 2015 }} 28 November 2014</ref> He is also the head of Jama'atu Nasril Islam (Society for the Support of Islam – JNI), and president-general of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA).<ref name="pad">{{cite book|last=Paden|first=John N.|title=Faith and politics in Nigeria|publisher=US Institute of Peace Press|year=2008|isbn=978-1-60127-029-0|location=Washington, DC|pages=32f}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == * [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6109118.stm Profile: Muhammed Sa'adu Abubakar] BBC News, Thursday, November 2, 2006, 10:30 GMT
{{s-start}} {{succession box | before = Muhammadu Maccido | title = Sultan of Sokoto | years = November 2, 2006–current | after = Incumbent }} {{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abubakar, Saadu}} Category:1956 births Category:Living people Category:Commanders of the Order of the Federal Republic Category:21st-century caliphs Category:Sultans of Sokoto Category:Nigerian Sufi religious leaders Category:Nigerian expatriates in Pakistan Category:Nigerian generals Category:Nigerian Defence Academy alumni Category:Barewa College alumni Category:Sons of sultans