The 48th President of the Ghana Institution of Engineers, first female President of the Institution, Ing. Mrs. Carlien Bou-Chedid, has delivered her Presidential Address to members of the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE) on Thursday, 16th November, 2017 at the Engineers Centre, Roman Ridge, Accra.
Her Address was under the topic: “Sustainable Development: An Illusion without Disaster Risk Management”. Ing. Mrs. Carlien Bou-Chedid, who is a Consulting Structural Engineer with over 30 years of experience, said that “some of the hazards that Ghana faces have caused considerable losses in other countries. They have set these countries back considerably in their development”.
She therefore advised that the management of Disaster Risk must be elevated to the highest level in our infrastructure delivery process else, we risk creating an illusion of development that can be wiped out in a single catastrophic event.
“Ghana is a developing country that is trying to enter the ranks of a developed country. But Ghana faces a dilemma. It has a growing population and must make considerable investments in infrastructure. It is also faced with hazards, both natural and manmade which have the potential to derail its development, so it must also invest in making its infrastructure safe. Ghana must therefore properly assess its risks and there are tools that can help in this assessment process”.
The Chairman of the program, Ing Sir Frederick K. Akwaboah who is a past President of the Institution, added that the topic is appropriate for Engineers to deliberate upon at this crucial time when nations throughout the world have been struggling to cope with the effects of various forms of disasters in recent years.
“Countless human lives are being lost through disasters. Precious infrastructure facilities are being destroyed through such disasters. Only a few days ago, the world was shocked to learn of the havoc caused to lives and infrastructure due to the effect of earthquake in Iran and Iraq, killing over 400 people, with more than 7,000 people also said to have been injured, the world’s deadliest this year”, Ing. Akwaboah said.
The program was attended by Past President, Council members, members of the GhIE, the general public and the media.
The first 10 books, which was autographed by the President by the GhIE, was auctioned at the program.
