On Wednesday the 11th of October, the SAICE Western Cape branch hosted their annual year end function. We were once again reminded about the critical role civil engineers play in ensuring effective service delivery and that as South African engineers, we are making great strides globally and we should be proud to be part of this community.

The event was hosted at the Granger Bay Hotel School and Cape Town was once again showing off with a beautiful sunset which we were able to enjoy over some good drinks and snacks. Geoff du Toit, the outgoing SAICE WC Chairperson, and Andrew Clothier, the SAICE President-elect, opened the evening and reaffirmed that as engineers we play an imperative role in building the South Africa we all love. Our guest speaker for the evening was Dr Michele Kruger, who is a leading water and wastewater expert and a winner of the FIDIC’s President and CEO’s Award. She shared about her work on various FIDIC, CESA and ECSA committees and her passion to make a difference in people’s lives was truly inspiring. She also spoke about the achievements and the expertise of the South African engineering sector globally. She closed off by making a call to the audience to take a seat at the table and join voluntary associations trying to make a difference in the industry.

It was a great privilege to connect with engineers across the different fields and generations and to share stories over a few laughs. We would like to thank everyone who attended the event for making it a memorable evening!