Mkhacane makes history

BORN and bred in Mhinga village in Vhembe, Stanford Mkhacane made history for the province when he was inaugurated as the 112th president of the South African Institution of Civil Engineering recently.

His election goes a long way in ensuring the profession of civil engineering reaches remote and marginalised areas across the country.

During his opening speech, Mkhacane, who holds various degrees said the global figures of people living without access to safe water stood at 780 million, while 2,5 billion people had no access to adequate sanitation, with more that 5 000 people being killed each year by diseases caused by the lack of these services.

He challenged engineering practitioners to practise their profession to benefit people on a long term basis. “How did we feel as engineers when the news broke that an innocent six-year-old died in one of the pit latrines still used in 11 450 of the 26 000 schools across the country?

“In the eyes of society, it means that civil engineering is failing,” he said.

He suggested that individuals or groups of professionals should infiltrate rural schools by adopting them and spend time influencing learners on early subject choices towards engineering.

“You may ask, where shall we get this amount of time to spend in this venture? With careful planning and commitment from each of us, it should be possible.

“Think about it, how much time do we spend chasing unproductive bidding for work per annum?”

Mkhacane is a registered professional engineer and a member of the South African Black Technical and Allied Careers Organisation. For years he has been involved in the design and construction of roads and the implementation of labour-intensive and community-based public works projects.