By SUNDAY ABBA, Abuja
The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has commended the reformatory steps being taken by the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) towards tackling the menace of building collapse and other forms of engineering failures.
Minister of Housing and Urban Development Arc. Ahmed Dangiwa made the commendation on Tuesday while delivering his welcome address at the ongoing COREN’s 32nd Engineering Assembly which began on Monday in Abuja.
He said, “Let me congratulate COREN for rising to the occasion by playing a leading role amongst the Regulators in the Built environment.
“The Federal Ministry of Housing & Urban Development appreciates the contribution of COREN in developing checklist to provide verifiable complete documentation of the construction process that allows tracking of actions or inactions to establish culpability in Building Collapse in Nigeria. This is geared towards finding lasting solution to the menace of Building Collapse in Nigeria.”
This year’s event themed: “Regulating Engineering Profession for Shared Prosperity in Nigeria, with an unprecedented crowd of dignitaries and other invited guests in the history of the COREN Assembly, as acknowledged by Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State in his goodwill message, has President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, represented, as the Special Guest of Honour; CEO, Dover Engineering Ltd, Engr Ekoja Ejeh, as the Chairman of the Occasion.
Others are the President, Malaysian Society of Engineering and Technology and Chair, Dublin Accord and Governing Group at the IEA, Prof. Megat Jahari Mohd Noor, as the Keynote Speaker; Minister of Works Sen. David Umahi, as the Chief Host; and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike and the COREN President as Co-hosts.
Meanwhile, while delivering his welcome address, COREN President, Prof. Sadiq Abubakar, appealed to the federal government to consider the strategic role of the Council for re-inclusion in government funding like its peers in other sectors to enable it improve on its regulatory performance towards checking the incessant failure of engineering infrastructures across the country.
The federal government had earlier excluded 26 professional bodies and councils of agencies from its budgetary allocations for the year 2024, of which COREN is one.
Prof. Abubakar affirmed that COREN was ever ready to improve its performance in regulating engineering education, training of practitioners and their practices in line with the global ethics and standards to ensure the prevention of the failures engineering infrastructure and safeguard lives and properties of the citizenry.
“The Council is therefore appealing to the FGN to continue to fund COREN similar to its peers in the health sector. It is our hope and prayer that the FGN would reconsider its position to return the Council into funding regime for the benefit of the nation,” the COREN Boss said.
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The COREN boss told the audience that in response to the call on the council to rise to the occasion to check the incessant failures of engineering infrastructure, the Council was embarking on reforms in its various areas of operation.
According to him, part of the reform was expansion of its coverage to about ten additional critical sectors of the economy, including Oil & Gas, Power, Mining, Communication, Construction, Maritime, Aviation and Aerospace, Agro-Allied, Manufacturing and Transportation.
Engr Abubakar explained that to consolidate on the gains of the Washington Accord membership of COREN which empowers certified Nigerian engineers to work anywhere in the world, efforts were in top gear to acquire membership of the Sydney and Dublin Accords to increase the mobility of engineering technicians, technologists, and craftsmen beyond the shores of the country.
He reaffirmed that arrangements had reached advanced stage with NBTE and other relevant organisations for the inauguration of the National Skill Council for Engineering, SSC4E, adding that COREN, a member of the Council, was charged with driving it.
The formal inauguration of the SSC4E is slated for Wednesday, 4th September, 2024, SUMMIT POST has learnt.
The COREN President also reaffirmed COREN’s approval of the resuscitation of the mandatory Supervised Industrial Training Scheme in Engineering, SITSIE, under a new name of Engineering Residency Programme, EREP, which engineering students must undergo for one year at the end of their programme, among others.