It was a moment of celebration for the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) at the occasion of World Federation of Engineers Organisation’s (WFEO) Annual General Meeting (AGM) , recently as engineers all over the world converged in Prague, Czech Republic to honour one of their own.
The occasion which marked the coming on board of the first black man as President, World Federation of Engineering Organisations was greeted with applause and cheers.
This prestigious position of the number one engineer in the world to a black man, Engr. Mustapha Balarabe Shehu of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, has been described as not only a pride to Nigeria, Africa, but the world at large.
The newly inaugurated President, Engr. Mustapha Balarabe Shehu, is the 17th President of the World Federation of Engineering Organisations (WFEO).
According to the firebrand, focused and determined president, who took over from his predecessor, Engr. Jose Vieira, he will keep the dream of the society burning by giving all it takes to move it to greater heights.
“To all the national and international members of the Association of Engineers, l extend my sincere appreciation to you for believing in my ability to serve as a global leader. “I am mindful of the tremendous responsibilities entrusted to me.”
He pledged to do all within his powers to promote and support all the regions as well as ensuring equity and diversity.
Speaking on the challenges faced as a result of climate change , such as flood, and that of conflicts resulting in the destruction of infrastructure and the displacement of people, the solutions he said, rest on the engineers, he urged.
“As engineers, we will always be ready to deploy our knowledge and expertise to rebuild these damages or infrastructure.”
To handle these challenges, there is need to be equipped with the right knowledge, he said.
As part of his agenda during his two years stewardship, he will ensure that engineers get equipped through training in order to have adequate knowledge to be able to handle challenges.
The new leader also will look into the issue of having a comprehensive data of engineers, specifying the total strength of the male and female engineers and their expertise.
Engineer Mustapha Balarabe Shehu was the 28th President of the NSE. He was also President of the African Federation of Engineering Organisations between 2015-2016.
The Executive Director, Alim and Associates Ltd., Engr. Muhyideen Alim Yusuf FNSE, a delegate at the event described Engr. Mustapha as a man of repute. He is of the confidence that his wealth of experience will help in bringing growth and development to the society.
The newly inaugurated President of WFEO, Engr Mustapha Balarabe Shehu, was a former president of the Nigerian Society of Engineers and has been an active participant in the WFEO.
Engr. Mustapha who was accompanied by family and friends had the support of Nigerian engineers both at home and in the diaspora.
It was indeed a historic event as everyone was in a high spirit as they looked forward to a successful and a fulfilled two years stewardship.
The World Federation of Engineering Organisations (WFEO) is the international organisation for the engineering profession. Founded in 1968, under the auspices of UNESCO, WFEO brings together national engineering institutions from some 100 nations and represents more than 30 million engineers.
