The minister of minister of Information, communications, science, technology and innovation Nthati Moorosi says females still have a bigger role to play to encourage other women and young girls to get into engineering.
Moorosi, says according to research, women only make up a miserly 14 percent of the global engineering sector.
The minister made this observation at a three-day conference held by the Lesotho Association of Engineers (LAE) at Lerotholi Polytechnic this week.
Held under the theme “Nurturing the Talent of Engineering through Promotion of
Youth and Women Participation”, the main objective of the conference was to increase visibility of engineering and its role in sustainable development.
It also sought to encourage students to study engineering by supplementing the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, (STEM) curriculum with practical engineering applications.
The engagement was further aimed at encouraging the girl child to study engineering, while displaying the importance of regulation in the construction industry
Moorosi suggested that girls don’t take up engineering as a career because of the social construct, that is, the way people are socialised.
“Engineers provide solutions to various physical barriers to development but in recent years we have also seen the growth of technologically driven engineering domains develop at lightening speed. No wonder the world is in the 4th Industrial revolution powered by information technologies which have catalysed the work of the civil and other engineering professionals.
“The organisation of this event intended to highlight different aspects of engineering work within our country coincides with the August month, that is commonly known as Women’s Month, thus the aim of the conference is also about promotion of the marginalised group (women) in this male dominated profession.
“To all women who have defied all odds to undertake engineering professions and compete on an equal footing with men, we are forever proud and bank on your experience to guide other aspiring young women in the field,” she noted.
She added that the National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) has prioritised, among other sectors, agriculture, energy, mining and tourism as key economic drivers of the economy. For these sectors to succeed, the country will rely in one way or the other on engineering.
“A lot of engineering projects are currently ongoing. Some are already completed, which tend to be engineering masterpieces and attract tourists to the country; these include the Lesotho Highlands Water Projects and others in both mining and energy generation.
“To address the clarion call of the conference theme, the ministry of public works has started an engineering induction programme by placing 16 engineering graduates within the Roads Directorate and Building Design Services Department, the majority of whom are women and all youth.
“This is the start of the capacity development of the engineering aspiring graduands who will soon dominate and manage all works and reverse the current state where foreign professionals dominate,” Moorosi observed.
She noted that the Lesotho Engineers’ Association is a voluntary association whose role cannot be undermined as it serves to not only capacitate engineers but also seeks to promote ethical practices and continuous professional development of its members.
“We are hopeful it will also have spill over effects on the engineering curriculum in our institutions of higher learning in so far as engineering fields of study are concerned. I therefore call upon all other engineering related professionals to forge partnerships with their respective counterparts in foreign countries and promote exchange programmes for learning and best practices,” she added.
For his side, the rector of Lerotholi Polytechnic, Sepiriti Tlali, said the school offers vocational training related to engineering.
He stated that they have looked at the National Strategic Development Plan where it talks about mining, agriculture and tourism among others, as the key sectors to drive the economy of the country, and none of those can develop without engineers.
According to Tlali, the reason why this country is lagging behind is because the engineering community is not well organised.
“Most of the institutions offer courses which are mostly in economics, social sciences and others, and I can tell you they are well funded. If you can compare the amount of money that the government spends to educate students in those institutions you find that it is more than where engineers are produced,” Sepiriti said.
The LAE was established in 1982. It is made up of 120 members who are engineers, technologists and technicians. The association aspires to facilitate information sharing platforms that will increase feasibility of engineering in its role in sustainable development.
It also seeks to set up and maintain a database for engineers in Lesotho; to promote creation of engineering professionals that are competent to their work, and to promote continuous improvement and development in the industry.
