Abia NSE inaugurates regulation monitors to boost engineering practice raquo; The Guardian Nigeria

SPIRITED to enthrone professionalism within its fold, members of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Abia State Chapter, has inaugurated a body known as Engineering Regulation Monitors (ERM). According to a member, representing South East in COREN, Chief Uche Ukpabi, ERM has been domiciled with the Nigerian Society of Engineers and run by the group in collaboration with the Nigeria Police and the Development Control Department of the State government represented by each inspectorate. Speaking on the theme of the event titled: "Strategies For The Transformation Of Construction Industry In Nigeria", Ukpabi, a fellow of NSE said that to achieve Click this link for more yohaig.ng objective, "COREN has put some machineries in place namely; establishment of COREN Investigation Panel, Disciplinary Tribunal, Memorandum of Understanding with the ICPC, Immigration Service and strong partnership with the Nigeria Police. In his address, the Chairman of NSE Abia Chapter, Mr. Shedrach Iweha said that both public and private sectors had yearned for best opportunities to enhance the construction industry not just in Nigeria but also in Africa adding that, this had led to series of researches within and outside the continent. In the case of Nigeria, he listed three terms of reference for meaningful transformation, said to be key to the construction industry in view of the enormity of flaws, mistakes, abuse and irregularities currently being witnessed in the industry. In his keynote address, Sir Chris Okoye posited that the country is witnessing a defining moment in its history because the current federal government is planning and visioning to chart a formidable way forward for the much anticipated giant lead in Nigeria’s socio-economic development. Okoye argued that the issues that will attract the current the Nigerian President and Governors’ attention is the reform of the construction industry as a sustainable instrument for re-engineering of the economy. He listed reasons for the above observation, namely; the contribution of the construction industry to the GDP on economy which he stated is 12 to 13 percent; the employment of the industry of 10-15percent of the working population, its accounting for about 50 percent of the gross fixed capital formation, construction activity that is relatively labour intensive; government being the largest investor in construction; management, administration and regulation of the Construction industry that lacked coordination and thus remains in a disjointed condition and has not been able to mobilize the right institutional/legal mechanisms to exploit the enormous capabilities and capacities of the industry. Also, Mr. Adekunle Mokuolu in his lecture titled " Strategies For Transformation of Construction Industry In Nigeria", he said that regulation and enforcement of the construction industry must be regulated through laws that would protect the participating professionals, financiers and Contractors. According to him, laboratories must be established to test all processes and materials in order to ensure their compliance with specified standards. "The strategy for transformation of the industry in Nigeria can only be achieved through the attitude of being ‘your brother’s keeper’ underpinned by adherence to professional ethics and integrity. iglobal.co Construction industry will always thrive because ‘ nothing is in its finished state’ and it is the only guaranteed and sustainable source of job creation", said Mokuolu.