The+Organization+of+the+Petroleum+Exporting+Countries

OPEC was created at the Baghdad conference in 1960 September 10-14 by Iraq, Kuwait, Venezuela, and Saudi Arabia, to unify petroleum exporting countries so there can be set oil prices and policies in order to economically benefit both the petroleum exporting countries themselves and the countries that buy oil.
 * History**

Member states include: Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. The most important countries are the five Islamic Republic countries of Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela.
 * Member States**

The goals of OPEC are to provide a steady supply of petroleum and to unify prices and policies in order to standardize the oil market to benefit its members economically.
 * Goals**

OPEC is divided into 5 divisions. In order of higher power to lower, there is a Secretary General, an Office of the Secretary General, a Legal Office, a Research Division and a Support Division.
 * Organization**

The largest advantage of membership is in fact, money. OPEC helps to bring it’s members billions of dollars per year.
 * Advantages of Membership**

The disadvantages of membership in OPEC: a member state must consult the organization’s higher-ups on almost everything to do with it’s oil industry, and all policies are made and unified between all member states. States must relinquish some power over oil prices and policies to the organization.
 * Disadvantages of Membership**

 As more focus in member states is put on the oil market and economics and trade, things in these countries are modernizing and globalizing more and more and local diversity may be challenged as a result.

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Information Retrieved From: http://www.opec.org/