Female engineers have been encouraged to actively participate in technical work traditionally dominated by their male counterparts to gain equal skills and expertise in the field.
This call was made during the inaugural Women in Engineering breakfast meeting held at Skyz Hotel, Naguru, under the theme: Empowering Women in Engineering: Building a Sustainable Future.
Speaking at the event, Eng. Ronald Namugera, the Registrar of the Engineering Regulatory Board (ERB), urged female engineers to take on hands-on technical tasks rather than limiting themselves to supportive roles. He noted that some women in engineering tend to shy away from core technical work, which ultimately hinders their professional growth and experience.
“Women, where they are, at their workplaces, should make sure they engage in technical works. Some ladies, when they’re involved in engineering works, they tend to want to do the peripheral work, the soft engineering work. So when you do soft engineering work, you will struggle to write a technical report, which is engineering,” Namugera stated.
He encouraged women to move past self-doubt and actively engage in the same tasks as their male colleagues.
“I want to encourage them that they should be able to do the work that men do. Don’t shy away. If you’re an electrical engineer and there are wires up the pole, you need to learn to climb the pole. If you’re a civil engineer, and there is work to be supervised in Mbarara, Isingiro, or Kidepo, and it’s a road, and you’re the engineer on site, you have to go down there, put on your boots. You’re an engineer; you studied the same things as a gentleman. So you go, put on your overalls, and do that supervision. That’s where you get the skills, the technical know-how,” he emphasized.
Namugera further highlighted that by actively participating in hands-on engineering tasks, female engineers would find it easier to meet the requirements for registration with the ERB.
“They need to step away from that, up their game, and be part of the work. They need to dirty their hands, go to the field—that’s the only way they will be able to register and get registered with ERB,” he added.
Eng. Wilfred Okello, the Vice President in charge of Finance and Administration at the Uganda Institution of Professional Engineers (UIPE), who served as the chief guest, commended UIPE for organizing such a meeting. He noted that such gatherings provide a valuable platform for female engineers, especially those new to the field, to connect with experienced professionals for mentorship.
He encouraged female engineers to take the necessary steps to acquire the required credentials, become members of the institution, and fully engage in the engineering profession while taking advantage of networking opportunities.
Eng. Okello also urged them to break away from isolation and ensure they are visible both digitally and physically.
“Do not be isolated. Be available, be visible, visibility both physically and digitally. I know many of you are very, very vocal digitally but not physically. Please be available physically,” he emphasized. He further encouraged them to rise above self-doubt, strengthen their mindset, and confidently embrace opportunities in the engineering field.
During the Women in Engineering breakfast meeting, female engineers were guided on overcoming barriers to career growth, professional development, and increasing their visibility in the workplace.
Eng. Aboth Yakoba, the Chairperson of the Women in Engineering Technicians and Technical Committee (WETT) at UIPE, expressed gratitude to the attendees for their participation. She revealed that UIPE plans to make the event an annual gathering to discuss challenges faced by women in the engineering field and develop solutions.
“This gives us an opportunity to network, share experiences, and get to know each other,” she said.
Delivering the keynote speech, Eng. Flavia Gutto Bwire, the Executive Secretary of the National Building Review Board (NBRB), expressed concern over the low number of female engineers in Uganda’s professional registry. She highlighted that out of the 1,536 registered engineers in the country, only 186 are women. Among them, 108 are civil engineers, 45 electrical engineers, 21 mechanical engineers, six telecom engineers, five agricultural engineers, and only one chemical engineer.
She emphasized the need to establish a women-led network to foster innovative thinking and promote greater participation of female engineers in the profession.
