Thursday , March 28 2024

Make your voices heard – Kufour to engineers

Former President, John Kufuor, has called on Engineers in the country to let their professional voices be heard at the corridors of power.

The former President said an outspoken Engineering professional body would assist national development efforts.

He said these when he delivered a keynote address as the Guest of Honour at the 47th Presidential Inauguration & Banquet as part of the Engineering Week Celebration of the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE).

The event was held at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, La, Accra on Friday, April 1, 2016.

The former President, who has been awarded the Honorary Fellow of Ghana Institution of Engineers, explained that Engineering will be nothing if not solving problems and improving quality of life of the citizenry; and challenged Engineers to build a resilient and sustainable infrastructure that will stand the test of time and contribute to the socio-economic development of the country.

The colourful ceremony witnessed the swearing into office Ing. Dr. Kwame Boakye, FGhIE as the 47th President of the Ghana Institution of Engineers and Council members.

The oath of office was administered by Justice Constant K. Hometowu. In attendance was Major Gen. O.B. Akwa.

The Out-going President of GhIE, Ing. Kwaku Boampong (FGhIE), in his handing over address expressed delight and appreciation to members of the Institution for supporting him during his tenure in office and assured the in-coming President of his full support during his term in office.

The new President of GhIE, Ing. Dr. Kwame Boakye, in his inaugural address said, “I feel privileged and truly honoured to be inaugurated as the 47th President of the Ghana Institution of Engineers. In all humility, I hope to make use of the opportunity to be of service to the Institutions and the nation at large”.
“I would like to declare that the theme that will drive all my activities is premised on the notion that: Ghana is going nowhere without Engineers and therefore the Ghana Institution of Engineers has a special responsibility to the country. No country ever developed without technology and in the more successful recently developed countries, Engineers have been at the forefront of leadership”, Ing. Dr. Kwame Boakye explained.

He added that Engineering has been and continues to be the backbone for the development and progress of any country. But for engineering where would we be today? Indeed, there would be no civilization.

The Pyramids of Egypt, the Taj Mahal of India, the Great Wall of China, etc, of yesteryears as well as the tunnels and bridges, the provision of easy access to potable water, the control of flooding, the space exploration, the cell phone and easy access to information are all products of engineering. It is therefore not surprising that there is a correlation between the number of engineers in a country and its level of development.

The ceremony, which climaxed the 2016 Engineering Week Celebration of the Ghana Institution of Engineers was in collaboration with the Ghana Armed Forces, was under the theme: “Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructure – The Role of Civilian and Military Engineers”.

The week-long celebration was attended by Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, who gave a cutting-edge lecture on the theme during the opening ceremony on Tuesday, 29th March, 2016.

The 2016 Engineering Week was launched by Air Marshal Michael Samson-Oje, Chief of Defence Staff and attended Past Presidents of GhIE, Council Members, Military High Commands, Engineers, other professional bodies, with fraternal greetings from Nigeria and other international engineering associations.

The Engineering Week Celebration also witnessed the induction of new members into the Ghana Institution of Engineers on Tuesday, 22nd March, 2016 at the Engineers Centre, Roman Ridge, Accra and a Health Walk on Monday, 28th March from Trade Fair to Teshie.

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