She also advised them to maintain and uphold the highest standards of best practices through integrity, honesty, and competence. This was contained in a speech read for her during the induction of new council members of GIA for the period of 2008 to 2010 in Accra at the weekend.
She called for mandatory participation of qualified building professionals in infrastructural projects al all levels, including the Districts, Municipal, and Metropolitan Assemblies. This, she said, would provide the experts the opportunity to offer technical advice that may be needed to prevent man-made disasters.
She noted that there is the need to develop medium and long-term development plans for urban areas to forestall future disasters. “There is the need to actively engage and seek professional input during the formulation and implementation of domestic programmes and policies” she added. She called for total transformation and strengthening of the development agencies for enhanced urbanization, and added that such relevant agencies need to be provided with adequate logistics and resources – both financial and human to execute their mandates to the fullest.
She mentioned some of the agencies as Town and Country Planning Departments, Departments of Urban Roads and Ministry of Local Government, among others.
Mrs. Justice Theodora Wood said as long as the population is increasing, land is under intense pressure.
From industrial activities, farming and other infrastructural development, there is the need to sharpen out professional skills in the built environment, to ensure maximum use of the secure resources to benefit the local infant industries in the country.
She asked government to put in measures that will improve capacities of institutions with the mandate to deliver in that area and to protect them from external pressures.
In his valedictory speech before handing over his presidency to Mr. Osei Agyeman as the new president of GIA, Architect William N. T. Evans-Anfom said the knowledge and the expertise acquired by the members are relevant and necessary in the development of the country.
He asked members of the institute to keep on improving themselves so that they can offer a better quality of service to the people whose taxes helped to train most of them.
He told the members that they have the responsibility, together with other professionals, to create and maintain sanity in the built environment as an essential ingredient in improving the overall quality of life.
“You cannot achieve this as an individual, unless by a dynamic and vibrant institute that is committed to becoming a voice, for excellence and best practices” he said.
Source: Daily Graphic Tuesday February 3, 2009By Daniel Amoo
