Martin Endjala
The Engineering Professionals Association of Namibia (EPA) demands its presence at decision-making tables in order to better contribute to society with a strong voice.
The EPA launched its five-year Strategic Plan which will serve as a roadmap for the next three years and the EPA Secretariat and Council is being urged to give full effect to the Strategic Plan.
“The Engineering Fraternity needs to be heightened in Africa, particularly in Namibia. Engineers need to be recognized and involved in the decision-making role in society and not just be implementors of projects. This is something that the Engineering Fraternity will need to work on,” EPA president, Sophia Tekie said during the launch last week in Windhoek.
She emphasized that it is high time that engineers stop following orders to build “this and that” and have no say.
Tekie reiterated the important role of the engineering association in Namibia which serves as the bridge between licensed and unlicensed engineers, given the mushrooming of engineering consultants witnessed of late, who she says are not members of the association.
“We as the Engineering Professions Association of Namibia (EPA) are excited to launch and share the first-ever developed Strategic Plan. With the development of this Strategic Plan, we followed a participative and consultative approach to ensure full understanding and ownership of the strategic process, our strategic imperatives, and ultimately to fulfil our mandate in Namibia,” explained Tekie.
She is of the view that the EPA will be the go-to place for anyone who wishes to verify if a certain engineer is licensed or not before permitting them to build a project. This, she says enforces accountability in an event where an engineer builds a building that collapses, for instance.
The strategic plan will enforce the requirement for all engineers in the country, coupled with authenticated courses provided by the association with a valid and proven certificate.
“The Engineering Professionals Association of Namibia endeavours to be the beacon of light, hope and inspiration to future generations, hence the importance of road mapping the path for future engineers, particularly that of the girl child. Of late, the EPA has not been doing well due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, the association was almost on the verge of bankruptcy and this is why collaborating with other bodies across Namibia and in Namibia is crucial to the association’s existence,” Tekie added.
She called on all the association members to honour their membership fees to ensure the security of the association and for it to continue carrying out its mandate and look after the wellbeing of its members.
EPA is currently in collaboration with the South African Road Federation and the London-based Royal Academy of Engineering.
