By MyEngineers
The Nigerian Society of Engineers, Abuja Branch, under the leadership of . Engr. Ahmed A. S. Y. Kutigi has announced the 4th Engr. Charles Mbanefo Memorial Lecture. Scheduled for July 29, 2026, at the National Engineering Centre Auditorium in the Central Business District, Abuja, the event marks the 16th edition of the prestigious lecture series.
This year’s theme, “Science and the Moral Foundations of Nation Building,” shifts focus from purely technical engineering boundaries to examine the moral character required to build lasting infrastructure and institutions.
The guest speaker is Most Rev. Dr. Matthew Hassan Kukah, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, renowned for his outspoken engagement with leadership, ethics, and national development. His invitation continues a tradition of bringing diverse professional voices into engineering spaces to address critical societal issues.
The event will be chaired by Engr. Ali Alimasuya Rabiu, President and Chairman-in-Council of the Nigerian Society of Engineers.
The lecture honours the memory of Engr. Charles Aniweta Mbanefo, who lived from 1941 to 2022. A towering figure in Nigerian engineering, he was the founding Chairman of the NSE Abuja Branch, a long-serving Council member for 26 consecutive years, a member of the NSE Board of Trustees, and the 21st President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers.
Born on April 16, Engr. Mbanefo attended the College of the Immaculate Conception in Enugu before earning his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Civil and Foundation Engineering from the University of Ottawa, Canada. His career spanned prominent roles with the Glamorgan County Council in the UK, various international construction firms, and teaching at Algonquin Poly in Ottawa.
Persuaded to return to Nigeria in 1979 by the late Emir of Zazzau, Alhaji Dr. Shehu Idris, he joined the Federal Capital Development Authority in 1982, retiring as a Deputy Director in 2001.
During his services, he supervised the construction of monumental Abuja edifices, including Aso Villa, the Supreme Court, the Federal Secretariat, the National Mosque, and the Transcorp Hilton.
As Chief Resident Engineer for the Maitama District, he replaced four planned bridges with culverts and underground drainage and introduced a hidden dam along Shehu Shagari Way.
He also belonged to a distinguished professional family alongside his brothers, Amb. A.C.I. Mbanefo and Arch. Frank Mbanefo. He passed away on October 27, 2022, at the age of 81.
The Speaker, Most Rev. Dr. Matthew Hassan Kukah is a prominent Nigerian Roman Catholic Bishop, public intellectual, and international peacebuilder born on August 31, 1952. Ordained a priest in 1976, he pursued extensive global education, earning a Master’s in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford, a Ph.D. from SOAS University of London, and a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School, alongside serving as a Senior Rhodes Fellow at St. Antony’s College, Oxford.
Kukah is a respected moral voice and national mediator, who served on critical bodies including the Oputa Panel, the National Political Reform Conference, and as Secretary of Nigeria’s National Peace Committee. He also founded The Kukah Centre, a public policy think tank dedicated to good governance and civic education.
