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By Maduka Nweke
The President, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Professor Sadiq Zubair Abubakar, has said that Nigeria has joined South Africa as one of two African countries that are now signatories to the Washington Accord (WA).
He said that attainment of the Washington Accord Provisional Signatory status will increase Nigeria’s global engineering ranking which will translate into economic and technological boom for the country.
Abubakar made the statement during a press briefing held at the University of Lagos, Akoka, recently to explain COREN’s Washington Accord (WA) Provisional Signatory attainment and its benefits to registered engineers.
Speaking to a cross section of leadership of engineering bodies during the briefing, the president explained that the benefits to attract from acceptance of COREN into the Washington Accord are enormous.
According to him, by virtue of COREN’s acceptance into the Washington Accord, the quality, productivity and mobility of Nigerian engineers would be improved upon and the engineering qualification offered in Nigeria will also be internationalised. “There will be technology transfer because Nigerian engineers plying their trade in other economies of the world, will enhance the transfer of knowledge which will in turn, improve Nigeria’s technological capacity.
“There will be foreign exchange improvement because Nigerian engineers will be opportuned to practice in other parts of the world thereby promoting exchange of currencies between the two economies. Having become a member of the WA, based on the minimum requirements and international best practices and standards, the quality of engineering education in Nigerian Universities will greatly improve because the implemented Outcome Based Assessment (OBE) is student-centered.
Engineering graduates in the country will henceforth meet the demands of the industry both in the country and abroad,”he said.
The president said, similar arrangements were being pursued by COREN under the Sydney and Dublin Accords for Nigerian Technologists and Technicians to capture the artisans. “Entry into these Accords would create great opportunities for Nigerian Engineering Professionals,” he said.
There are currently 21 countries in the Washington Accord, including UK, U.S., Germany, Canada, Japan, China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Taiwan, Singapore, Hongkong, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Switzerland, South-Africa, among others.
The signatories of WA are committed to the development and recognition of good practice in engineering education.
The activities of the Accord’s signatories are intended to assist the growth of globalization of mutual recognition of engineering qualifications. The Washington Accord is specifically focused on academic programmes which deal with the practice of engineering at the professional level.
Abubakar said the new dawn to the engineering industry would enable it to bring all stakeholders together to harness the gains of existing laws in the country that recognises COREN registered engineers. This, he noted, will help them take the lead in the local content policy including handling of government contracts and taming quackery.
While fielding questions from journalists, he assured that measures were in place to ensure that Nigerian engineers exported abroad as expatriates returned to use the skills at home.
He said an agreement had been reached with South Africa to allow Nigeria handle exportation of all West African expatriates and also sign a jurisdiction agreement. He explained that the jurisdiction would spell out how to export COREN certified engineers from other parts of the continent.
Abubakar said the signing of COREN took place on June 14, 2023 at the International Engineering Alliance (IEA) meetings in Taiwan and made Nigeria the second African member after South Africa. “COREN was admitted to become a Provisional Signatory of the Washington Accord on June 14, 2023, making Nigeria the 2nd African member of the Accord,” he said.
