Public Works School begins Master’s in Geotechnics and structures

By Mbeh Moses Eben in Yaounde

Director of N.A.S.P. Pr.  Nkeng George

The National Advanced School of Public Works now offers a specialized Master’s program in geotechnics and structures. The new program was launched on 16 April 2014 at the main campus of the school situated at Elig-Effa in Yaounde, during a solemn ceremony to welcome the first batch of students for the Specialised Master’s Programs and those registered for other regular engineering programs offered at the school.
    Welcoming students and guests at the solemn ceremony the director of the school, Prof. George Elambo Nkeng said this years opening was special because it marks the launching of the Specialized Master’s Program in Geotechnics and Structures. Prof. Elambo said the 105 pioneer students of the program will undergo a 2-year training that will culminate in the award of a Master’s in Geotechnics and Structural caculations. He said the new specialty was very important and vital in building construction and road works.
    Prof. Elambo used the occasion to also congratulate the 163 students who succeeded in the competitive entrance exams into the engineering cycle (BAC/GCE ‘A’ Levels + 5) sections of the school. He said the 163 students admitted into the different programs were selected from a total of 2500 candidates who sat for the competitive exams. 25 of the students will specialize in renewable energy, 29 in waste management and 113 in water management and sanitation.

    Goerge Elambo Nkeng who was only recently admitted to the rank of full Professor (some press reports hold that he is the first ever to be raised by Cameroonian authorities to the rank of full professor of Chemical Engineering), expressed the hope that “these new grains” that the school is sowing would bear the desired fruits at the end of their respective training programs. But he at once expressed confidence that the end products of the batch would be as good as those of previous batches, especially giving that they would be trained by a crack team of teachers comprising nationals and expatriates from partner universities.
    It should be mentioned that degrees offered at the National Advanced School of Public Works are recognized by the European Union especially because of the school’s partnerships with acclaimed universities in the world notably the University of Padoua and Ca’Foscari both in Italy, the National Public Works school in Lyon France, Purdue University USA, International Institute for Water and environmental engineering in Burkina Faso etc.
    “Our goal is to make the NASPW a centre of excellence not only in training, learning and research but also in character development, creativity and the global capacity of students to realize their full potentials in life,” Prof. George Elambo said, thanking parents, the government, teachers and partners for the efforts they are making to enable the school to realize its dreams.
    Prof. Elambo thanked especially the EU for sponsoring the Water Management and Sanitation Program through a grant of one million Euros ie 656 million cfaf, in partnership with the University of Padoua and Ca’Foscari.
    The ceremony was presided over by the minister of public works. It was attended among others by representatives of partner universities and associations.
    The NASPW is a state-run, university-level technical and professional training institution created in 1982 by presidential decree. It is placed under the dual supervisory authority of the ministry of public works and the ministry of Higher Education.