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The Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation, Lindiwe Sisulu has called on engineers to patriotically contribute to the development agenda of the country. Minister Sisulu made this call while delivering a virtual keynote address at a breakfast seminar hosted by the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE).

Minister Sisulu addressed members of the NSBE on the Role of Local Engineers in the execution of the National Water & Sanitation Master Plan.

Sisulu said: “Today’s global challenges such as climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic require engineering minds that would offer ground-breaking solutions aimed at accelerating economic recovery”.

Minister Sisulu added that the country needs engineers that will take a lead in realising “our vision of new human settlements that provide housing and comfort to our people, engineers that will help change the spatial orientation of apartheid cities and towns”.

Addressing the issue of shoddy workmanship Minister Sisulu implored members of the NSBE to shy away from corruption, not sign off poorly constructed infrastructure projects and not bow to pressure to compromise technically sound decisions.

Speaking on behalf of the engineers, President of the NSBE, Mr Mdu Mlaba said they have noted with interest the drive by the Department of Human Settlements to procure some of the properties from the State Owned Entities such as Eskom and Transnet. Mlaba said their engineers and project managers are ready to partner with the government to convert these buildings into decent and affordable for people living in the cities.

Mr Mlaba also conveyed his organization’s commitment to work with the government as it embarks on finding lasting solutions to water and sanitation challenges in Emfuleni Local Municipality.

Other topics discussed at a seminar included work readiness of South Africa’s engineering graduates, the role of the NSBE in the socio-economic transformation of the country and investment in water and sanitation infrastructure.

Issued by the Ministry of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation