The president of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE),Engr. Ali Rabiu, has called on its members to provide “smart engineering solutions” to help government in addressing Nigeria’s lingering development, insecurity challenges and boost global investment.
He made the call yesterday during a webinar to mark the 2026 World Engineering Day celebration, with the theme“ Smart Engineering for a Sustainable Future through Innovation and Digitalisation”.
He emphasised the need for engineering-driven solutions to support government efforts in delivering practical and sustainable responses to insecurity.
“As we engage in discussions aligned with this theme, we must also explore how engineering can help government deliver practical solutions to the lingering insecurity challenges facing our country.
“Nigeria’s position in global investment rankings and ease-of-doing-business metrics is significantly influenced by safety conditions and regulatory predictability.”
According to Rabiu, without urgent intervention, safety deficits will continue to undermine GDP growth, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), job creation, infrastructure sustainability and public trust in governance.
“Engineers, as critical stakeholders in nation-building, have a vital role to play in addressing these challenges and strengthening the foundation for economic growth and stability.
“I am particularly pleased that our Young Engineers are well represented at this event. It is my desire that we continue to strengthen their capacity, as they are the hope of the future of our society and country,”he said.
Rabiu explained that their active involvement in forward-thinking ideas was crucial and NSE would ensure that they were positioned to stand ahead of their counterparts globally.
He noted that his administration expected young engineers to think creatively and develop solutions that would benefit the country and humanity at large.
He said they should begin to demonstrate their readiness to carry forward NSE’s institutional goals of promoting engineering professionalism, strengthening technical competence and fostering good governance.
He reaffirmed the Society’s commitment to global engineering advancement as it joined the 7th edition of the World Engineering Day (WED) celebration.
Rabiu commended the initiative of UNESCO in establishing the global platform and appreciated the sustained efforts of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO) in driving the programme over the years.
He described the platform as instrumental in promoting engineering excellence and collaboration across borders.
The keynote speaker, deputy vice-chancellor (Academic), Delta State University, Abraka, Prof. Hilary Owamah, declared that smart engineering driven by innovation and digitalisation remained the defining solution to Nigeria’s development challenges.
Speaking on the theme,“Smart Engineering for a Sustainable Future through Innovation and Digitalisation,”Owamah described the present era as “the defining moment of our generation,” marked by extraordinary technological advancement and equally extraordinary global challenges.
“The fundamental question before us is: can we engineer growth without engineering collapse?The answer lies in smart engineering,” he said.
He explained that smart engineering represented the intelligent integration of engineering science, digital intelligence, data-driven systems and sustainability principles.
“It is engineering that predicts, adapts and optimises,” he said.
Owamah said that Nigeria possessed world-class engineering capacity,however, what is required is scale, integration and sustainability.
He stressed that sustainability is no longer a policy aspiration but an engineering mandate.
“Every bridge we design, every road we construct, every drainage system we neglect shapes future generations,” he warned.
Owamah noted that smart engineering would curb environmental degradation enabling the design of flood-resilient infrastructure, optimisation of energy consumption, real-time monitoring of water systems and prediction of structural failures before catastrophe.
“We must move from build and repair to ‘predict and prevent. The future engineer must be as comfortable with data as with concrete,” he said.
He said Nigeria should not always import smart systems, but engineer local solutions.
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