IStructE’s new Pan-African Structural Engineering Knowledge Partnership will offer the Council’s 10 African Professional Engineering Institution (PEI) members access to IStructE’s technical resources.

The aim is to empower and upskill structural engineering capacity across Africa, piloting the use of expert materials, and co-creating new knowledge where required. This will help accelerate the work of those PEIs to empower engineers to improve their design and construction skills for a safe, sustainable and resilient built environment.

The IStructE will offer access to:

• A wide range of technical manuals and guides, including on the safe design of concrete and steel structures in earthquake-prone locations.
• 100+ free on-demand and live events.
• Climate Emergency resources to help engineers design lower-carbon buildings including:
• How to calculate embodied carbon
• The Structural Carbon Tool
• Embodied carbon basics for structural engineers on-demand course
• Discounted rates for IStructE’s Affiliate and Graduate membership and proactive promotion to the IStructE’s comprehensive free Student membership.

Yasmin Becker, CEO of IStructE, said: “The IStructE’s mission is rooted in a simple but powerful goal: to ensure that the structures built around the world are safe, resilient, and sustainable. In an era defined by climate change, rapid urbanisation, and global inequality, this mission has never been more important - or more urgent. As a learned society, we have a responsibility to be at the forefront of exchanging information and ideas relating to structural engineering globally, and we are excited to be working in collaboration with our international partners on this project.”

Local engineering institutions play a crucial role in the registration and professional development of their members. By partnering with CEC members in Africa and sharing expert structural engineering knowledge and guidance, the IStructE will increase capacity-building of structural engineers, support the design and construction of safer buildings and bridges, and improve their resilience in the face of climate change.

This is especially relevant given Sub-Saharan Africa’s rapid population growth, urbanisation and ongoing construction boom over the last few decades. The OECD estimates that by 2050, Africa’s population is predicted to double, reaching 2.2 billion, with two in three people in Africa living in cities. (Source: OECD, “Africa’s urbanisation dynamics”, March 2025.)

Yasmin Becker added: “Structural engineering is a global and connected profession in which achieving excellence depends on shared knowledge and expertise. The IStructE is therefore delighted to work with the CEC and their African PEI members on this partnership that advances the field of structural engineering.”

Sanzan Diarra, CEO of the Zimbabwean Institution of Engineers, commented: “I am delighted to see the IStructE’s Pan-African Structural Engineering Knowledge Partnership being delivered. There are myriad opportunities for Sub-Saharan African countries to make our cities safer, more resilient, greener, and inclusive for future generations. IStructE’s Partnership is a welcome initiative, not just for the benefit of structural engineers, but also the societies in which the profession works.”

Dawn Bonfield, president of CEC concluded: “We are thrilled to connect IStructE with our African PEIs for this innovative project. We all agree that sharing global best practice and guidance is essential to build and sustain a safe built environment that can withstand climate change, now and in the future.”

IStructE’s extensive resources will be available free and online either through its own website or those of the African PEIs, allowing for easy access to a collection of digital materials. The African PEIs are:

• Institution of Engineers, Kenya (IEK)
• Institution of Engineers, Rwanda (EIR)
• Engineers for Change Sierra Leone (CEC Associate member)
• Sierra Leone Institution of Engineers (SLIE)
• South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE)
• South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE)
• Institution of Engineers Tanzania (IET)
• Uganda Institution of Professional Engineers (UIPE)
• Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers (ZIE)
• Engineering Council of Zimbabwe (ECZ) 

A free online launch event, Pan-African knowledge partnership: strengthening engineering capacity through global collaboration, will be held on 16 September 2025 from 15:00 - 16:00 BST. Yasmin Becker and IStructE’s Vice President Tendayi Munyebvu are the main speakers.