Africa Surveyors November-December 2022 digital issue

ENGINEERING
COREN Seeks Signatory to Washington Accord for
Smooth Mobility of Nigerian Engineers
The Council for the Regulation of
Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) has
disclosed that it was pushing to
ensure that Nigerian engineers are able to ply
their trade in any part of the world which are
signatories to the Washington accord.
President and Chairman of Council of
COREN, Mr. Ali Rabiu, in a statement in Abuja,
explained that meetings were already being
held to allow Nigerians practice in signatory
countries.
The Washington Accord was first signed
in 1989 and recognises that professional
engineering education programmes
accredited by the signatories deliver
outcomes that are substantially equivalent to
the Washington Accord Graduate Attributes.
“For now, also being pursued vigorously
by COREN is the process of applying
for Provisional Signatory Status of the
Washington Accord (WA) under the
International Engineering Alliance (IEA)
seeking mobility for Nigerian engineers such
that they can practice in signatory countries.
“In the course of this, COREN team had
held series of meetings with Emeritus Prof.
Elizabeth Taylor, Washington Accord Executive
Committee Chair and her team and the
Engineering Council of South Africa, ECSA.
“Equally, COREN has been effectively put
on the engineering world map by ensuring
its adequate visibility and participation in
activities of World Federation of Engineering
Organisations (WFEO), such as the World
Engineering Summit of March, 2022 at Costa
Rica.
“It also participated at the 30th Federation
of Engineering Institutions of Asia and the
Pacific (FEIAP) General Assembly, the 6th
FEIAP Convention of July, 2022, which held
in the Philippines and also the 8th Edition
of African Engineering Week/6th African
Engineering Conference in Ethiopia,” Rabiu
noted.
Additionally, COREN stated that in
championing mobility of Nigerian engineers
within the African region, it recently hosted
delegations from Sierra Leone Institution of
Engineers and Ghana Institution of Engineers.
In compliance with the provisions of the
Engineers, CAP E11 2004 Act as amended
and in line with its commitment to the
uplift of COREN as a formidable engineering
regulatory organisation in Nigeria, the council
stressed that it ensured the deployment of
more effective strategies for guaranteeing
best practice among the various professionals
in engineering through the review of
curricula.
The body explained that this is critical
as Nigerian engineering programmes are
transiting from the traditional input based
to outcome-based education, with the aim of
raising the competency level of the Nigerian
engineering practitioners.
COREN noted that the successful
investigation and reprimanding as well
as prosecution of erring engineering
practitioners as it relates to collapse of
buildings and sundry offences associated
with the built industry in Nigeria were also
embarked upon in the outgoing year.
It highlighted the introduction of the
Continuing Professional Development
(CPD) points as part requirement for
the procurement of practice licence as
a quality control mechanism to ensure
that only competent practitioners are
issued with practice license, with effective
implementation date from January, 2023.
“This is in pursuance of the COREN amended
Act which has made practice licence
compulsory for all engineering practitioners
and firms.
“In order to ensure operational excellence
in engineering, some critical indigenous
engineering regulations, codes and standards
have been developed, some of which
have been recently gazetted to regulate
engineering practice in Nigeria,” it pointed
out.
Rabiu stressed that the organisation has
also introduced the COREN Engineering
Practitioners’ Code of Conduct, Regulations
on Accreditation of Engineering Programmes
in Nigeria, Regulations on Structural
Engineering Practice in Nigeria as well as the
Regulations for Establishment of Engineering
Practitioners Examination Committee.
In addition, the COREN president said there
are now regulations for marine engineering,
naval architecture and marine surveying
practice in Nigeria.
He explained that work has commenced on
developing National Construction Safety
Standards for Nigeria in the area of building/
civil infrastructure, amongst others.
“The establishment of the Engineering
Practitioners’ Examination Committee for the
immediate implementation of a harmonised
professional registration scheme that will be
beneficial to all stakeholders in engineering.
“As a result of the incessant incidences of
collapse of structures, particularly buildings
in various parts of the country, posing
serious safety and economic challenges to
the populace, COREN called presidents and
registrars of some regulatory and professional
bodies in the built environment together to
a crucial meeting of the professionals in the
built environment to proffer sustainable and
efficient solutions to the ugly menace,” the
statement added.
It also listed the establishment of Engineering
Accreditation Committee to among other
terms of reference, implement COREN
accreditation policy and formulate guidelines
and procedures for accreditation and the
launch of new engineering programmes as
part of the council’s achievements.
“COREN is implementing the Engineering
Regulations Monitoring Programme by
establishing State Technical Committees and
State Expatriate Monitoring Committees in all
the States of the Federation. At present, 20
have been inaugurated. The most recent ones
were in Abeokuta, Ogun and Lagos States last
week respectively,” Rabiu stressed.
12 November-December issue l 2022 www.africasurveyorsonline.com