The Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers (ZIE) is a multi-disciplinary Institution covering all aspects of engineering in Zimbabwe. Its operation and membership are regulated by an Act of Parliament but the Institution is a private body made up of its members. It is a Learned Society similar in many ways to the other Professional Institutions in Zimbabwe and elsewhere. The Institution was founded in 1944 as the Society of Engineers and received legal status as an Institution in 1952. It is governed by a policy-making Board made up of members elected from all grades of its ranks. Decisions on the running of the Institution are ratified by the Board. For effective operation of the Institution, the Board runs the Institution using a diverse of committees, namely – Executive Committee; Professional Panel; Education and Qualifications Panel; Learned Society and Membership Services, and Finance and Staff Committee. The Institution organizes a national congress every second year and invites other Engineering Institutions outside Zimbabwe to participate. Awards ceremonies are held every year and an invitation is sent to an outstanding professional (usually an engineer) from within or outside the country to come and deliver a public lecture in memory of the first President of ZIE, Eng. Cecil LeonardRobertson.
It is the purpose of Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers to set and maintain appropriate standards of engineering and technician competence; to promote the advancement of engineering and facilitate the transfer and dissemination of engineering knowledge; to raise the character and status of the profession and promote public awareness and confidence in it and to ensure correct standards of professional conduct and ethics.
In an effort to realise the foresaid objectives, ZIE Members should strictly adhere to rules and codes of conduct. ZIE registers all engineering professionals. Below is an outline of the different membership grades:
Any person studying towards the attainment of an engineering diploma or degree is supposed to be registered as a Student Member upon completion of a Student Form and payment of a nominal fee that covers the duration of one’s study. Upon completion of the studies the student member will then upgrade his/her status to Graduate Technician (Grad. TZweIE) or Graduate Member (Grad.ZweIE), for engineering diploma and degree holders, respectively. Onewho has an engineering diploma plus at least two years post-college engineering experience, may be admitted as a Technician Member of the Institution. Applicant needs to complete an M1 Form, write report on training and experience plus project report. One’s application has to be supported by three ZIE Corporate Members. Nominal registration fee is payable upon submission of the forenamed documents, together with certified copies of professional certificates and associated transcripts. The same applys to an engineering degree holder whose post- university engineering experience is more than three years. The difference is on the depth of the requisite reports. A degree holder is admitted as a Corporate Member. Applicants are encouraged to adhere to provisions of the associated membership guides. If one is a Member of an Engineering Institution that is recognized by ZIE he /she will be exempted from submission of a Project Report. However, application has to be accompanied by a certified copy of the associated membership certificate.From the ZIE Member Grade one can attain the Fellow status which is the most superior ZIE professional engineer grade.The grade is attainable after at least five years of superior responsibility in administration, design, execution or operation of engineering work, academic teaching or engineering research.
It should be stressed that any person or firm practising engineering work or wishing to do the same is required by law (Engineering Council Act 27:22 and SI 153 of 2012) to register with the Engineering Council of Zimbabwe (ECZ). Application thereof has to be made through a registered engineering constituent body. ZIE is currently the sole ECZ recognised engineering constituent body. Engineering professionals with engineering experience of more than two years (for diploma holders) and three years (for degree holders) are obliged by law to register first with ZIE and then ECZ, which is a statutory body whose responsibility is to regulate engineering practice in Zimbabwe. Engineering firms, on one hand, should submit the following documentation to register with ZIE: Certificate of incorporation, company profile, duly completed Affiliate Organisation form and requisite registration and annual subscription fees. The registered firm will be issued with a renewable ECZ annual practising licence at a fee determined by the number of engineering professionals the engineering firm employs.
In view of the foresaid, it is prudent that all engineering professionals and engineering firms be seen to be compliant with the Engineering Act lest they are be caught in the cold. It is the purpose of such laws to protect the Zimbabwean society form shoddy engineering works and from numerous skilled and semi-skilled personnel masquerading as engineering professionals.
