By Mashe Umaru Gwamna
The Nigerian Institute of Civil Engineers (NICE), said the signing of the Washington Accord by the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) has put Nigerian engineers in the international market space.
National Vice President NICE, Sharafadeen Olumoh, Made the disclosure in Abuja, recently.
Olumoh stated that the Washington accord is an agreement between member countries that engineers within the member states, will have opportunity to work in member countries without any interference and further tests or certification.
“There are previous conditions that were given to Nigerian engineering family to meet before this signature because there are minimum standards in engineering education that are required as significant such as Outcome Based Education.
“That is a deviation from the existing educational system that we have, the existing one is the curriculum based.
”There are formation of curriculum and courses which students must pass and graded after passing it, then the students are graded and graduated and the difference of that from the OBE is that students are graded based on what they can do.”
He said it was marrying the educational theory with the practical; somebody that had in mind what to invent, for example in machine, can go into a university for that purpose and begin his career by studying how to invent such a machine.
He said if the individual succeeded and the invention was approved and he succeeded in inventing that machine, the certificate or degree would be awarded to such an engineer, based on that expertise.
”Washington Accord signatories are granted the mobility of the engineering personnel within member countries. So Nigeria was duly granted the signatory status though Nigeria is not yet a permanent member.
“With this status, Nigerian engineers are able to move within these member countries and then practice without hindrance and it will improve certainly the engineering practice within Nigeria.”
Originally signed in 1989, the Washington Accord, is a multi-lateral agreement between bodies responsible for accreditation or recognition of tertiary-level engineering qualifications within their jurisdictions.
Currently there are 21 signatories that make up the Washington Accord; Nigeria is the second African signatory.
Some of the signatories to the Accord are Australia, Canada, South Africa, Indonesia, United Kingdom and the United States of America.
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