Surveyors seek higher role in national development, hold 50th AGM

The 50th Annual General Meeting (AGM), of the Nigerian Institution of Surveyors (NIS), will hold in Sokoto between the 27th and 31st of July 2015 in the Ancient City of Sokoto the seat of the Caliphate. This event prides itself as being the largest gathering of Surveyors in Africa.

In a statement signed by the Secretary-General of the association, Mr. Olumide Adewebi, the 2015 AGM, which theme: “Surveying our Profession Beyond Boundaries”, seeks to serve as another defining moment for the Institution.

This is coming against the drive achieved at the last annual general meeting held in Benin City, Edo state, where the theme was “Connect and Collaborate”. The objective of this year’s AGM, he said, is to seek ways to ensure that surveyors think outside the box and to ensure that surveying finds relevance in untraditional areas.

“This we find most appropriate and timely especially since our whole nation is currently seeking change and a positive one at that. We are posed to engage in the national development, thus, governments at all levels should see us as partners in progress and in the quest for the development of our nation”, said Adewebi, adding that NIS, as the umbrella body for all surveyors in Nigeria, is the second oldest professional body in the country and was established in 1934 with the Pan Nationalist Sir Herbert Macaulay as one of its founding members and was then called the Association of Licensed Surveyors.

“In 1965, NIS held its first Annual General Meeting and adopted its current name the Nigerian Institution of Surveyors and elected Surveyor C.T. Olumide as its first and life President. This mandate is not lost on us till date”, he said.

According to him, the AGM will comprise of Courtesy Visits to the Governors of Sokoto as well as those of Zamfara and Kebbi States with similar visit to be made to the His Royal Highness the Sultan of Sokoto.

Similarly, the Deputy President of NIS, Akin Oyegbola hinted that misunderstanding within the institution is being addressed.
He said it is no news that there is a little misunderstanding within the institution concerning the right interpretation of some aspects of the law setting up its legal arm (SURCON), saying this situation is unavoidable in a dynamic and enlightened Association, adding that the AGM/Conference hope to take far reaching decisions that will lay it to rest.

“What the Executive Members and by extension the Council of the Institution have tried to do is to manage the fallouts by informing and where necessary educating members on the issue while remaining focused with high sense of responsibility and commitment.

“The Discussion Session that comes up on Wednesday 29th July, 2015 is expected to be the last formal avenue of looking at the issue all its ramification before the Business Session on Thursday 30th July, 2015.

“It is expected that after the sessions the entire membership of Nigerian Institution of Surveyors would have been informed on where we are coming from, where we are now and where we should be going”, Oyegbola assured.

Other events will include presentation of technical papers, business sessions and the AGM, with other events that include a special plenary session and a panel discussion on the “Role and Structure of Our Professional Space: Current and Future Challenges”.

The plenary speaker is the 8th president of the Institution, Solomon Ojeikere, while the discussants are two former registrars of SURCON, a State Surveyor General and a past president of NIS.