Kenya faces shortage of certified engineers
Construction work at the Miritini's Mombasa West Railway Station nears completion. The station had over 100 local engineers on site during its construction. FILE PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Kenya has only 2,100 certified engineers serving 45 million people against an expected minimum of 6,000.
Engineers Board of Kenya chief executive Musuni Mulinge said Wednesday increased numbers of professional engineers will enhance capacity in various sectors, including agriculture, by boosting food security, transport, and manufacturing among others.
“We are concerned about the low number of qualified professional engineers in the country which may have a negative impact on the development and achievement of Vision 2030,” said Mr Mulinge.
He said the board has instituted continuous professional development training for engineers which will stimulate economic growth as envisioned in the country’s development blueprint.
“The programme will ensure that our engineers keep pace with global trends and share experiences within engineering practice while maintaining development of knowledge as key to guaranteeing competitiveness,” said Mr Mulinge during a stakeholders’ workshop for board members in Kisumu.
Transport PS John Mosonik challenged the board to be innovative in formulating strategies that will ensure that they increase the numbers of graduate engineers.
Mr Mosonik admitted that the government was concerned with the low numbers of professionals in the construction industry, engineers included, in spite of the growth in numbers of our institutions of higher learning.
