By Our Correspondent
YENAGOA — The Association of Professional Women Engineers in Nigeria (APWEN), Bayelsa Chapter, has honoured Bayelsa-born engineering icon, Engr. Prof. (Mrs.) Ongoebi Maureen Orubide Etebu, for her remarkable contributions to engineering, academia and public service, describing her as a trailblazer whose achievements have redefined the role of women in Nigeria’s engineering profession.
The honour was bestowed on Prof. Etebu during the second edition of APWEN’s Annual Public Lecture Series held in Yenagoa, where a citation chronicled her exceptional academic accomplishments, pioneering leadership and decades of dedicated service to national development.
Born in Kaiama, Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, Prof. Etebu’s academic journey took her from the United States to the United Kingdom and Nigeria, earning degrees in Chemical Engineering, Industrial Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, including four Master’s degrees and three Ph.Ds. She made history as Nigeria’s first female Professor of Mechanical Engineering, a feat that has earned her national recognition and a place in the Nigerian Women Hall of Fame.
According to the citation, Prof. Etebu played a pivotal role in the establishment of the temporary site of the Niger Delta University, Amassoma, where she supervised the construction of critical infrastructure through direct labour while serving as Director and later Commissioner for Special Projects in Bayelsa State.
Among the landmark projects executed under her supervision were lecture theatres, the university library, auditorium, administrative complex, staff residences, hostels, reinforced concrete jetty, internal road network and several other facilities that laid the foundation for the institution’s growth.
Former Bayelsa State Governor, the late Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, had in a commemorative publication on the university’s first decade praised Prof. Etebu for relocating her office to Amassoma to personally supervise the execution of projects and ensure strict compliance with quality standards and project timelines.
Following her service in government, she returned to academia at the University of Port Harcourt, where she rose through the ranks to become Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Director of the Science and Engineering Workshop, Associate Dean, Dean of Engineering and Professor of Mechanical Engineering.
She later became the pioneer Vice Chancellor of the Nigeria Maritime University, Okerenkoko, where she was credited with laying the institution’s academic and administrative foundation.
The citation also highlighted her membership and fellowship of several professional organisations, including the Nigerian Society of Engineers, the Nigerian Institution of Mechanical Engineers and numerous professional institutes within and outside Nigeria.
Prof. Etebu has received over 114 national and international awards in recognition of her outstanding contributions to engineering education, research and public administration.
In June 2024, the Federal Government appointed her Chairman of the Governing Council of the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, where she continues to provide strategic leadership.
APWEN said the recognition was not only in honour of Prof. Etebu’s distinguished career but also to inspire younger women to pursue excellence, integrity and innovation in engineering and related professions.