What Regulations Guide Engineering Practice in Kenya? A Look at the Engineers Act, 2011

On Sunday, 23rd August 2026, I read the Engineers Act, 2011 to understand the regulations that govern our profession. The Act was published in the Kenya Gazette on 13 April 2012 and covers several aspects of our profession including the Engineers’ Board of Kenya, professional engineers’ registrations and offences and penalties. Here is a summary of the key lessons I learnt.

Engineers Board of Kenya

The laws of Kenya have a high element of specificity and one thing that stood out about the Board and the specificity of Kenyan laws is that the Board’s headquarters shall be in Nairobi; however, the Board can establish branches in other counties.

The Board is responsible for the registration of engineers and firms, regulation of professional engineering services, setting of standards, development, and general practice of engineering.

Composition of the Board

At a time when the Board has been vacant for almost a year, we should first check out who should be part of the Board. The Board consists of the following:

• The Chairperson
• Principal secretaries from finance, engineering and higher education
• The chairperson of the Institution of Engineers of Kenya
• The Registrar
• Three people representing different engineering disciplines
• A public officer from a public corporation involved in engineering
• A representative of universities
• Two representatives from the private sector

All seven appointed representatives must be registered professional engineers. This is important as the Board is expected to be composed soon.

Powers of the Board

The functions and powers of the Board include, but are not limited to:

• Maintain the Register
• Publish the names of registered and licensed persons
• Enter and inspect sites to verify professional engineering services and works are undertaken by registered persons and that standards and professional ethics are observed.
• Evaluate local and foreign engineering programmes for recognition by the Board
• Establish a school of engineering and the Kenya Academy of Engineering and Technology
• Hear and determine disputes relating to professional conduct or ethics of engineers

Tenure and Vacation of Office

Members of the Board are to hold office for a term of three years. The term is renewable once. Members of the Board might be removed from office due to absence from three consecutive meetings, conviction and imprisonment for more than six months, becoming incompetent or unfit to discharge their functions or ceasing to be registered as professional engineers.

Limitation of Liability

The members of the Board have limited liability in that they cannot be personally liable for an act or default of the Board done or omitted in good faith while carrying the functions of the Board. The Board is, however, not relieved of its liability to compensate the member of the Board for any injury to him.

I think this limitation of liability allows the members of the Board to exercise their powers and discharge their duties to the public without much worry.

Qualifications for Registration as Professional or Consulting Engineers

A person shall be eligible for registration as follows:

Professional Engineer

For a professional engineer, the person:

• Is registered as a graduate engineer and has obtained requisite practical experience as determined by the Board
• Has passed professional assessment examination
• Is a corporate member of the Institution of Engineers of Kenya

Consulting Engineer

For a consulting engineer, the person:

• Has practised in a specialized engineering field as a professional engineer for a requisite amount of time as determined by the Board
• Has achieved a standard of competence to enable him to practice as a consulting engineer in that particular specialization

Requirements for Registration of an Engineering Consulting Firm

One may register an engineering consulting firm if:

• The firm is registered as a business or has a certificate of incorporation
• Has at least one partner or principal shareholder who is registered as a consulting engineer and who has a valid licence in a specified discipline
• At least fifty-one percent of the shares in the firm are held by Kenyan citizens

Removal of Persons from the Register

These are some of the reasons that could lead to the Registrar removing a person from the Register:

• Found to be of unsound mind
• Convicted of an offence
• Declared bankrupt
• Requests that his name be removed from the Register

Engineers Training Levy

Kenya’s regulations always have a way of taking money from people’s pockets. The Engineers Act imposes the Engineers Training Levy that is supposed to be paid by registered engineers annually. An engineer who doesn’t pay this levy shall not be eligible to be issued with a licence.

Renewal of Licence

The Act requires the practising licence to be renewed yearly. This therefore means there are annual costs to practising engineering. A thing we have to come to terms with in Kenya.

Provisions Relating to Offences and Penalties

Professional Misconduct

A person commits an offence of professional misconduct if that person:

• Deliberately fails to follow the standards of conduct and practice of the engineering profession set by the Board
• Commits gross negligence in the conduct of his professional duties
• Allows another person to practise in his name, where that person:
  • Is not a holder of a licence
  • Is not in partnership with him
  • Takes advantage of a client
  • Lacks regard for client’s needs or rights, or
  • Shows incompetence or inability to render professional engineering services or works
• Knowingly submits documents such as a land survey prepared by a person who is not licensed to prepare such documents

A person who commits such an offence is liable to be suspended or be deregistered.

Offences by Persons or Training Institutions

This section governs training institutions and penalizes those in charge of institutions that offer training services for engineering courses without being accredited by the Board. The person in charge of such an institution is personally liable to a fine of five million shillings or imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or both.

Prohibition for the Use of the Term Engineer by Unlicensed Persons

An unlicensed person who uses the style or title of ‘engineer’ in describing his occupation commits an offence. For this offence, there is no specific punishment provided in the Act and therefore the general penalty applies.

However, for the offence of practising without a licence, the offence is punishable by a fine not exceeding two million shillings or imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or both.

Prohibition of Employment of Unregistered Persons

A key clause I noted here is that an employer shall not employ or engage a graduate engineer in any work or professional engineering services unless that graduate engineer is under the supervision of a professional or consulting engineer.

General Penalty

The Act specifies that a person who commits an offence under the Act for which no specific penalty is provided for is liable for a fine of not less than five hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or both.

Implementation and Enforcement

The Board has the powers to implement and enforce the provisions of the Act. That is good as it means the Board is not a toothless dog but rather a Board that can act on its mandate.

Do Engineers Actually Abide by the Provisions of the Act?

Most of the content of the Act is well known by engineers in Kenya. Therefore, most engineers abide by most of the provisions of the Act. From my observation, most people who don’t abide by the provisions of the Act are non-engineers. However, from my perspective, most offences under the Act in Kenya currently go unpunished.

Strengths

The Act has sensible penalties for offences under the Act. If the provisions of the Act are enforced, they are likely to deter unprofessional practice.

Gaps, Ambiguities & Conflicts

The Act doesn’t reflect the situation on the ground as most people still continue to practice without being in partnership with professional engineers. The Act therefore leads to the regulation of engineers rather than the regulation of engineering practice. However, the Act is mostly good.

My Recommendations and Professional Assessment

The Act could be better if it had provisions to ensure the regulatory gap due to a vacant Board doesn’t happen again in future. Also, while the Act stipulates the role of the Board in working together with universities on curriculum development, we see less of the Board’s involvement in institutions of higher learning. The Board should therefore provide mentorship opportunities to engineering students while also working with the faculty to ensure the curriculum is up to date.

Questions Asked

• What could the Board do to improve engineering practice in Kenya?
• How could the Act be improved?

If you have an answer to any question above, feel free to contact me.

Source: Engineers Act, 2011 (Kenya), as published in the Kenya Gazette and available through Kenya Law.

About the Author

El-Bethel Buyanzi is a Civil Engineering student at the Technical University of Kenya with an interest in the built environment, engineering, leadership and professional development. He writes about his experiences, lessons and observations as he prepares for a career in the built environment. To learn more about the author, visit his about page.