In few days times, precisely on July 19, 2018, engineers across the nation would be heading to Auchi in Edo State as we celebrate the President of COREN Engr Kashim Ali mni, at annual Distinguished Lecture.
The event being put together by the Auchi Branch of the Nigerian Society of Engineers under the leadership of Engr. Mrs M. A. Obomeghie is the first in the series of what is expected to hold every year.
Acclaimed Development and Infrastructure engineer expert, Engr Nurudeen Rafindadi, the Managing Director, Federal Road Maintenance Agency, FERMA will delivered the keynote address at the event whose theme is:” Accelerating Road Development in Nigeria”.
The event which is named after the COREN President is Scheduled to hold on the July 19 2018 at Mr. Biggs Event Centre along Benin-Abuja Express Road Auchi will take off at 10am and chaired by NSE President Engr Adekunle Mokuolu while the Executive Governor of Edo State Mr. Godwin Obaseki is the Special Guest of Honour and Vice Chancellor, Edo State University, Engr. Prof. Emmanuel Aluyor, is Special Guest along with other dignitaries expected in attendance.
Engr Rafindadi, a Civil Engineer of has over 30 years experience spanning telecom sector ( Regulatory Framework), Environmental Engineering, World Bank assignments in Rural development and urban upgrading, road infrastructure etc is a Fellow of Nigerian Academy of Engineers and Nigerian Society of Engineers. And has worked across public and private sectors including civil society organisation.
Who is Engr. Kashim Abdul Ali, FNSE, FSESN, NPOM, mni, The COREN President?
Engr. Kashim Abdul Ali hails from Ofugo – Ankpa, Kogi State. He had his early tutelage under his grandfather, a traditional ruler, who’s memory he holds dearly, and early education at the NA Primary School, Ofugo, one of the few
boarding primary schools established by the defunct Northern Nigerian government. He thereafter proceeded to Ochaja Secondary School, Kaduna Polytechnic and the Federal University of Technology, Owerri. He is a
Registered Civil Engineer with post-graduation training and experiences in Highways, Water Resources, Administration, Railway engineering, project management and strategy.
Engr Ali is Member of the National Institute (mni) and recipient of the Nigeria National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM), Engr Ali is the President, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Fellow and Past President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Fellow of the Solar Energy Society of Nigeria, Fellow of the Academy of Engineering and Technology for Developing World, statutory Board member of National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) and Governing Board member of the UNESCO International Science, Technology and Innovation Centre for South – South Co-operation. He was a member of Nigeria Vision 20:2020 Steering and Implementation Committees, and Chair of the sub-Committee on Physical Infrastructure.
He was also co-Chair of the Infrastructure Policy Commission of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, and member of the Policy Support Group to the Economic Management Team (2008 – 2010). He is presently a member of the steering committee of the Infrastructure Policy Commission.
He served in the positions of Director/Chief Executive Officer of the FCT Water Board, Member of the FCT Executive Committee, Special Adviser (Utilities), director (Technical Services) of the Abuja Infrastructure Investment Centre, Director, Transportation and presently, Chairman of the FCT Water Board.
He holds the traditional titles of Olimene Ata Igala, and Galadiman Ankpa, and has several awards and recognitions locally and internationally.
Engr Kashim Ali in his words
“If there is any calamity anywhere today, the expectation is that even if a mud house collapses, the journalist will say ‘where are the engineers?’”
– Engr. kashim Ali on Tendency by media to Blame Engineers for every calamity
“ Over the years the engineering profession has played second fiddle in the scheme of things. For instance, engineers are the least paid among professionals, and the least consulted and considered at manning levels, even in key engineering institutions in the public service of our nation. …These problems in our opinion derive largely from non-optimisation of our productive capacity via unfriendly policies and tendencies that tend to demoralise the competent and hardworking citizens.
-Engr Kashim Ali on Engineers on unfriendly Policies against Engineers
“I urge Mr President to challenge the Nigerian engineering family, and provide the needed resources as President Kennedy did, to build modular refineries, power systems, rail permanent ways, highways and water resource infrastructures, and see if we will not deliver them within record time.”
-Engr kasim Ali at 2016 COREN Assembly
-Engr kasim Ali at 2016 COREN Assembly
“We recognise that over 90% of the nation’s appropriation is in engineering projects through which a greater percentage of corruption takes place. Even though acts of corruption in engineering projects are not necessarily perpetrated by engineers, they are usually blamed for the occurrence. It can no longer be business as usual. Any engineering personnel involved in any corrupt practice directly or indirectly will be severely sanctioned,”
-Engr Kashim Ali on Corruption in Engineering projects
“While the gaps in the provision of infrastructure are worrisome, the lack of a maintenance culture is even more disturbing. We have also watched helplessly as the investment in infrastructure has continued to decline at all levels of government. Obviously our dream of a great nation will remain a mirage until the issue of infrastructure is addressed”
-Kashim Ali at his Inaugural Speech as NSE President
“I urge all engineers to be interested in what is going on in their places of work and even outside. You all have a duty to report to COREN with accurate information, whenever and wherever you notice quackery in engineering works. I also urge engineers to serve as whistle blowers to ensure that nobody is doing anything that will take engineering jobs away from the engineering family.”
-Engr Kashim Ali , 2016
-Engr Kashim Ali , 2016
“We are calling on the three tiers of government to patronise and utilise local engineers for the technological advancement of the nation… Nigerian society is also under-utilising the local engineers in the nation, hence, the dearth of infrastructural facilities in the country,”
-Engr Kashim Ali on Under-utilization of Nigerian Engineers
“There is a cadre called technologists, there is another cadre in the civil service called the engineers; the engineers have no problem, they grow to level 17. We are not against the salary disparity between the technologists and the engineers but we are also saying, allow technologists to also grow to level 17.We do not have that issue among members of the engineering family because all the cadres have representatives in COREN council,”
-Engr Kashim Ali on HND/BSC Dichotomy controversy
“Because of the way Nigerian Engineers are being perceived in public domain, we tried to benchmark our qualification with other nation so undertook the Benchmark Minimum Academic Standard (BMAS) for Nigerian Engineering Undergraduate for Academic process we did it in 2013/2014 and then send it to the world. We sent it to UNESCO, Federation of Engineering Institutions in Asia and Pacific (FIAP) to take a look at what is being done in Nigeria and let us know what is missing. UNESCO set up a committee to look into it and made a very good recommendation. FIAP admitted us as the only non-member nation of Asia and recommended us to be a member of the World International Engineering Alliance and if we become signatory to the Washington Accord then we would have internationalize our qualification.
-Engr Kasham Ali on quality of Nigerian Academic Standard
“So, we are asking that the parliament should empower us so that we can have the power to do such thing. We also need the resources to also do that. So, those are the basic thrusts of the proposal that is in the House of Reps for an amendment to the COREN Act and we want to seek that eventually, if it comes to you, we want you to be aware of it, seek your colleagues’ support so that we can strengthen COREN and the practice of engineering in Nigeria.”
– Engr Ali to National Assembly on Empowering COREN to take Action against professional abuse
“Engineering projects generally are capital intensive if there is no affirmative action individuals cannot contribute to the development of engineering project in Nigeria. The foreigners that are doing it have the advantage of having the support of their own country, we need the support from government to provide funds that we can access at low digit interest rate so that we can build engineering business that is the main thing that is holding engineering down. “
-Engr Kashim Ali on need for Government to Support Engineers through Project Funding
Compiled by Isqil Najim
