[1][2] Barikor received his doctoral degree in Political Science with emphasis on development studies from the University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
[3] Barikor lectured at the Rivers State College of Education and served as a supervisor at the Gokana local government council from 1992 to 1995.
[4] He moved to the University of Port Harcourt continuing his academic career until 2010 and achieved the rank of Senior Lecturer in Political Science.
[5] In 2004, he was appointed Rivers State Coordinator of the National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP) by the President of Nigeria.
In 2007, Barikor led the Grassroots Empowerment Network (GEN) delegation to the South Africa Investment Summit held in Durban.