The Institution of Engineers Rwanda (IER) has received 116 new members who presented their oaths at the body’s headquarters on Friday, February 11. 

Newly sworn-in professionals include 86 engineers and 30 professional technologists. 

They add up to 1,483 registered engineers, 201 technologists and 25 technicians who were registered in the Institute of Engineers Rwanda. 

During the ceremony, Engineer Gentil Kangaho, the President of the Engineer’s body rallied all the engineering candidates to register and work with legal professional licenses. 

"You have taken a vital step in your professional journey and I encourage all others to come and register in the organisation so as to advance your career endeavors in a professional manner,” he said. 

"We often get claims of unregistered engineers who work without license and disgrace our profession in the society because they do not pass through the regulator and are trained on pursuing internationally accredited standards of our job,”. 

A regional working space

On his part, Engineer Alex Dushime Hategekimana, the body’s registrar rallied the sworn-in engineers to pursue the opportunities present in the region, beyond Rwanda. 

"As you get the national recognition, you also get the rights to practice in countries with whom we share mutual agreements, and so far, those are Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya,” he stressed, adding that more countries will be added. 

Hategekimana emphasised on the issue because most Rwandans do not exploit the opportunities abroad whereas nationals from other countries do. 

"You can find plenty of foreign engineers practicing in Rwanda but rare Rwandan engineers can be found practicing in other countries. So, we also want this cult to end so that Rwandans can maximise their opportunities abroad,” he noted. 

Eustache Uwizeyimana, a professional engineer who was also sworn-in today, indicated that membership in their regulator opens a door of opportunities to them.

He said: "Working illegally, in isolation and in hidden conditions won’t allow you to prosper and develop your career. So, this membership will open doors for us, and will create more networking opportunities for its members,”.

Established in 2008, the Institute of Engineers Rwanda strives to become a centre of excellence and best practices in advancing and promoting Engineering profession in the country.