Some 127 engineers have been inducted into the Ghana Institution of Engineering (GhIE) with a call on the government to ensure that all public projects are awarded to professional engineers and registered engineering firms under the institution.
The President of the GhIE, Prof. Charles Anum Adams, who made the call at the induction ceremony in Accra, said the institution was the body that ensured that its members adhered to professional standards and regulations in the execution of projects.
He said the nation needed to get value for projects funded from the public purse, for which reason the government must rely on regulated professionals.
The inductees comprised of 56 in the Civil Engineering Division, 17 in the Mechanical/Agriculture Engineering Division, 10 in the Chemical/Mining Engineering Division, 39 in the Electrical/Electronic Engineering Division, and five other candidates who could not previously attend their induction ceremony.
GhIE role
The GhIE is a professional body responsible for the certification of engineering practitioners, which comprise professional engineers, professional engineering technologists, engineering technicians, and engineer craftsmen, prior to registration with the Engineering Council of Ghana.
The GhIE derives its authority from the Professional Bodies Decree NRCD 143, 1973, and the Engineering Council Act, 2011 (Act 819).
Professionalism
Prof. Adams indicated that the ethics of engineering practice provided that practitioners conformed to internationally established technical, environmental, and safety standards.
Consequently, he charged the new members to keep to professionalism, and to give meaning to the training and expertise they had acquired.
The Executive Director of GhIE, David Kwatia Nyante, asked the newly inducted engineers to continue to develop their profession, share knowledge and to develop their leadership abilities.
He also advised them to be active in branch activities because the institution continued to bring to the doorsteps of members some significant activities and events.
Building of branches
Mr Nyante said in line with GhIE’s objective to build and strengthen its branches and make them vibrant and well organised, induction ceremonies were now held in most branches.
He tasked the inductees to deliver their work by ensuring that they did not do the wrong things.
The immediate past President of GhIE, Lesile Alex Ayeh, who is also the current President of West African Federation of Engineering Organisation, urged engineers in the country to be game changers by contributing their quota to improve the lives of society.
He said the fourth industrial revolution was in motion, and consequently, there was the need for all hands to be on deck for Africa to take its rightful place in the global arena, with engineers being key players in that regard.
Four engineers, one from each technical division, received awards for their exemplary performance.
They were Anita Ama Yentumi from Chemical/Mining Technical Division, Adodo Kwame Fiawoo from Civil Technical Division, Magdalene Bonney from Electrical/Electronic Technical Division and John Stephen Asamoah from Mechanical/Agric/Marine Technical Division.