‘Why engineers are needed in Nigeria’s politics’

Association for Consulting Engineering in Nigeria (ACEN) has called for the integration of engineers into the country’s politics, saying that every sector of the economy requires engineering input to grow.

Managing Director, Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Nurudeen Rafindadi, made the assertion in his keynote speech at the 41st Annual Conference of ACEN in Lagos.

Speaking on the topic, Integrating Nigerian Engineers Into National Development, he highlighted the impact of engineers on the nation’s economy.

Rafindadi said, “Engineering and technology are crucial to the creation of social amenities like healthcare, quality education and support infrastructures such as transport, power, water supply, and agriculture. Engineering activities revolve around technical, social and economic systems, providing a crucial impact on all identified development indexes.

“Engineers are at the core of national development, as no nation can develop in the absence of flourishing practice of engineering and technology.

“Integrating the Nigerian engineer into the development process is, therefore, a starting point to the development of our nation.”

Nigeria is expected to witness stability in the exchange rate and the entire macroeconomic environment, the engineer said.

“The country should also witness a major improvement in economic performance, which should result, among others, in reduced importation of food items and refined petroleum products, improved power supply, improved transport infrastructure, expanded industrial production, improved competitiveness, greater availability of foreign exchange, improved job creation, reduction in poverty and greater inclusiveness in the spread of the benefits of economic growth,” he added.

Three potential pathways to integrate engineers into national development, the FERMA boss maintained, were broadly classified as policy formulation, programme development and project implementation.

“The enactment of the COREN Amendment Act 2019 represents a landmark in our quest to ensure that engineering regulation acquires the required teeth in the enforcement of policies favourable the development of engineering in Nigeria.”