Engineers Fiji president Pratap Singh says he wanted to dissolve the council last month, citing what he describes as a lack of passion among members of the board.
The issue emerged during International Women in Engineering Day celebrations in Nadi, when two young engineers raised concerns about delays and difficulties in registration with Engineers Fiji.
Production engineer Mrunmay Badgujar said she graduated in 2025 but has yet to receive confirmation of her student membership application.
“I am a recent mechanical graduate from USP (Univercity of the South Pacific),” Ms Badgujar said.
“Last year our professor had given out applications for us to apply to Engineers Fiji. I actually applied and followed up multiple times, and I had paid the registration fee, but there was no movement beyond that.
“Now I have graduated and I had applied to be a student member, I feel there could be better responses to engineering students because it’s not just me; there’s a whole group that applied.
“I feel Fiji needs more creative engineers, and I am looking forward to getting my application accepted.”
Another engineer, Shayal Priyanka, raised concerns about the absence of clear pathways for women engineers, particularly those experiencing career gaps due to childcare responsibilities and changes in accreditation from the Fiji National University and the University of the South Pacific.
In response, Mr Singh said there had never been a full enforcement of engineering registration laws in Fiji.
“Having come in this leadership role, I would like to know where the gaps are,” he said.
“One thing you all need to understand is that Fiji does not have a registration of engineers yet.
“This Registration Act has never been enforced, and government is trying to form a registration board and hopefully it will happen.”
An Engineers Fiji representative said 18 applications from engineering graduates had been assessed.
“We are lining up interviews for engineers as well. So, in the next few weeks you will hear from us,” he said.
