By Isqil Najim
The Nigerian Society of Engineers, Kabuga Branch, is set to hold the 8th Annual Engr. Ibrahim Khaleel Inuwa, OFR, Memorial Lecture on 15th August, 2026, at the CBN Center of Excellence, Bayero University, Kano, New Campus. The event begins by 11:00am.
The lecture, which has become a yearly tradition for the branch, will this year be combined with two other major activities, the 1st Engr. Prof. O.A.U Uche, Young Engineers Innovation Competition, and a Corporate Members Induction ceremony.
The event is being put together under the leadership of Engr. Dr. Gambo Haruna Yunusa, Chairman of NSE Kabuga Branch, on behalf of the executive committee and the entire membership of the branch.
Some of the dignitaries expected to grace the occasion include Engr. Ali Alimasuya Babiu, President and Chairman in Council of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Prof. Muhammad Lawal Attanda, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Horticultural Research Institute, who will serve as guest speaker, Air Vice Marshal Saddiq Ismail Kaita, Pro Chancellor of Bayero University Kano, who will deliver the keynote address, and Prof. Haruna Musa, Vice Chancellor of Bayero University Kano, who will serve as chief host.
The lecture, organized by the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Kabuga Branch, in Kano State, was originally established as the Engr. I.K. Inuwa Annual Public Lecture. It was instituted to honour the memory of late Engr. Ibrahim Khaleel Inuwa, OFR, a titan of Nigerian engineering who served as President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers between 1989 and 1990, and as President of COREN between 1991 and 1994.
The maiden edition, held in 2017, was themed “Getting Out of the Woods, Diversifying the Nigerian Economy Through the Telecommunications Sector,” with Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission, as keynote speaker.
Subsequent editions, from the 2nd to the 4th, continued to focus on engineering governance, infrastructure development and professional excellence in Northern Nigeria, drawing various industry leaders and academic figures over the years.
At the 5th edition, held in 2025, which was combined with corporate member inductions and awards, Engr. Margaret A. Oguntala, National President of the NSE, served as chairman of the occasion, while Ali Bukar Ahmad, General Manager of Market Operations at the Transmission Company of Nigeria, delivered the keynote address. Khalid Sulaiman Halilu, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, also featured as guest speaker at that edition.
The lecture continues to honour the memory of Engr. Ibrahim Khaleel Inuwa, OFR, while also creating a platform for young engineers to showcase innovation and for new members to be formally inducted into the profession.
Profile of Engr. I. K. Inuwa, OFR
Engr. Ibrahim Khaleel Inuwa was born on 15th April, 1949 in Gwale L.G.A, Kano City, Kano State. He had his primary education at Kofar Kudu Junior Primary School, Emir’s Palace, Kano, and Gwale Senior Primary School, Kano, before proceeding to Government College Kaduna, where he obtained his West Africa School Certificate with Division One, and Rumbas College Kano, for his Cambridge Higher School Certificate.
He attended Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, graduating with a B.Eng degree in Mechanical Engineering, and later obtained an M.Sc in Automobile Engineering from Cranfield University, Bedford, in 1978.
He did his National Youth Service in Port Harcourt at the Marine Services Department of the Rivers State Transport Corporation, after which he served in various engineering roles in the Kano State Ministry of Works & Survey and the Ministry of Work and Housing, rising to Principal Mechanical Engineer in charge of the Central Mechanical Workshop.
Between 1980 and 1989, he held several senior positions, including Chief Engineer in the Ministry of Rural and Community Development, Kano, Chief Mechanical Engineer at the Kano State Agricultural and Rural Development Authority, and Deputy Managing Director of National Trucks Manufacturers Ltd.
He also served as a member of the Kano State Executive Council, holding office as Commissioner for Rural & Community Development and later Commissioner for Animal Health and Forestry. He retired voluntarily from the civil service in 1989 to chair Technovation Limited, an engineering and management consultancy firm.
Engr. Inuwa received the Nigerian Society of Engineers Award six times between 1983 and 2008, and the COREN Distinguished Merit Award for Excellence in 1997. He was a COREN registered engineer, Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Honorary Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Agricultural Engineers, and a member of the Nigerian Institute of Management. He was conferred with the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) in 2005.