By Kingsley Adegboye

Pissed by the dearth of qualified artisans in the nation’s construction industry, the Nigerian Institution of Civil Engineers, NICE, has announced plans to build a skills acquisition centre in Lagos.

National Chairman of the Institution, Mr. Ade Omopeloye, an engineer, who disclosed this at the 2012 distinguished public lecture of the group in Lagos, decried the take-over of the construction industry by  artisans from neighbouring ECOWAS countries.  “Ironically, Nigeria now relies on neighbouring countries for good masons, bricklayers, carpenters, iron benders and others,” he said.

Omopeloye said the institution is aware of the basic menace facing the engineering profession especially in the area of development of the support skills, craftsmen, artisans and tradesmen. He added that there can be no sufficient synergy if attention is not given to the development of these lower cadres of the civil engineering practice.

The president of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, NSE, Mustapha Balarebe Shehu represented by Mr. Akintola Akintayo, both engineers, said roads and bridges cannot be ignored in a country craving for sustainable development.

The NSE President who lauded the appreciable efforts made by the  Lagos state government in the provision of infrastructure, however called for its sustainability. He also decried non-absorption of engineering students by concerned authorities during industrial attachment.

Delivering the lecture titled “Roads and Bridges as Infrastructure: Economic Impact in Lagos State,’’ the Lagos State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, an engineer  described roads and bridges as the greatest public works projects that states can use to drive  their  economy.

Hamzat noted that Lagos has improved its infrastructure stock to a level that it should be taken seriously as a destination for business and investment.

The commissioner who pointed out that the extensive development is already yielding fruits, said the benefits are immense both for economic, development and planning purposes.

According to him, the ongoing expansion of  the Lagos/Badagry expressway will boost tourism in and around the axis.
Continuing, he stated that the growth of the state GDP in real terms is the evidence of the improved environment and reduction in travel time.