N.T.A Efo
Engr. (Rev.) Ette Ikpong Ikpong Etteh, OFR, belongs to that distinguished generation of Akwa Ibom sons whose lives and professional achievements have contributed significantly to the development of Nigeria’s engineering profession and national infrastructure.
Engineer, consultant, entrepreneur, mentor, administrator and Christian minister, Engr. Etteh has distinguished himself through decades of professional practice, institutional leadership, human-capacity development and service to Nigeria.
Born on December 16, 1935, at Akassa, in present-day Bayelsa State, Engr. Etteh hails from Ukpenekang in present-day Ibeno Local Government Area. His parents were High Chief Ikpong Ikpong Etteh and Deaconess Nkaepe Ikpong Etteh.
Between 1945 and 1947, he attended St. Patrick’s School, Ifiayong, after which he attended Holy Trinity School, Mbiakong, in 1948.
He proceeded to the prestigious Hope Waddell Training Institution, Calabar, where he received his secondary education between 1952 and 1958.
After secondary school, the young Etteh briefly entered the teaching profession. From January to November 1959, he taught Mathematics at Lutheran High School, Obot Idim.He subsequently joined the Federal Department of Statistics, where he served as an Assistant Statistical Officer from 1959 to 1961. This early experience preceded his transition into the engineering profession.
In 1961, he gained admission to the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, on scholarship to study Civil Engineering. He graduated with a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering.
His university years also laid the foundation for what would become one of the most important partnerships in Nigerian indigenous engineering. It was during his time at ABU, Zaria, that he and his friend and future business partner, Lawrence Oluwemimo Arokodare, began developing the vision of establishing an indigenous engineering consultancy capable of competing with the dominant foreign-owned engineering practices of the era.
Following his university education, Etteh gained practical professional experience with Ove Arup and Partners in Ibadan. Working with the internationally recognised engineering firm exposed him to professional engineering practice and gave him the practical experience that would later prove invaluable in establishing his own consultancy.The experience gained at Ove Arup was particularly significant because Etteh and Arokodare had already conceived the ambition of building an indigenous Nigerian engineering practice capable of undertaking major infrastructure assignments.The two young engineers subsequently travelled to the United Kingdom for further professional studies and training, strengthening their technical preparation for the establishment of their own firm.
Etteh obtained an MSc in Highways from the University of Surrey in 1969, followed by a second MSc in Bridges from Surrey in 1973.He also attained professional qualifications including MICE and C.Eng. in 1969, became a Member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (MNSE) in 1971, a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (FNSE) in 1981, and a Foundation Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering in 1995.
His intellectual and professional development did not stop with engineering. He later studied theology at the Immanuel College of Theology, earning a Diploma in Theology in 1997. On June 7, 1998, he was ordained a Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria.
In 1970, Etteh and Lawrence Arokodare transformed their long-held ambition into reality with the establishment of Etteh Aro & Partners, an indigenous engineering consultancy headquartered in Ibadan and subsequently operating in several Nigerian cities.Its inaugural major assignment was the rehabilitation of the 80-mile Benin–Asaba Road. The project marked the beginning of a professional journey that would see the firm become associated with numerous major infrastructure projects across Nigeria.
The establishment of Etteh Aro & Partners was significant beyond the fortunes of the company itself. At a period when foreign engineering firms dominated much of Nigeria’s complex infrastructure work, Etteh and Arokodare demonstrated that Nigerian engineers could establish and sustain professional firms capable of undertaking sophisticated engineering assignments.Over subsequent decades, the firm became associated with the design, engineering studies and construction supervision of major roads, bridges, buildings and other infrastructure.
Among the projects associated with the firm are the Niger Delta Development Commission Building, Ibom Hall, Stallion House, C & C Towers, the East–West Coastal Road, the access road and arterial road network for the Calabar International Convention Centre, and the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs in Lagos.
His professional influence also extended to major highway and transportation projects. Engineering professionals who worked under his coordination have documented his involvement in projects including the Port Harcourt Ring Road,Kano–Maiduguri Road dualisation, Calabar Port Access Road, Inuayet Ikot–Okposo Road and the Ado-Ekiti–Iyin–Igede Road.
Engr. Etteh’s contributions went beyond engineering consultancy.He served as Chairman of the Board of Calabar Cement Company from 1975 to 1980 and later became Chairman of the Federal Mortgage Finance Company from 1993 to 1994.
He also served on several important national committees, including committees associated with Road Vision 2000, which contributed to the development of the Independent Road Fund and the Board for Road Maintenance.
He was also involved in the appraisal of the National Housing Programme, served on the S. O. Fadahunsi Panel on the Review of Federal Government Contracts, and participated in the Ibom International Airport Implementation Committee, where he also served as Chairman of the Technical Sub-Committee.
One of the most enduring aspects of Engr. Etteh’s legacy is his commitment to mentoring young Nigerian engineers.Etteh Aro & Partners deliberately promoted the training and professional development of young engineers, providing them with opportunities to acquire practical experience and exposure to modern engineering methods. Many professionals who passed through the organisation subsequently went on to build careers of their own.His professional colleagues have continued to recognise this contribution.
He served as Chairman of the Association of Bridge and Structural Engineers, Nigeria Chapter, from 1989 to 1998.
He received the Nigerian Institution of Civil Engineers Merit Award in 2002, the Presidential Merit Award in 2005, and was among the first five engineers inducted into the Nigerian Engineers Hall of Fame in 2013. He also received an Excellence Award in Engineering from the Nigerian Society of Engineers in Uyo in 1993.
In 2001, in recognition of his contributions to the nation, he was conferred with the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) by President Olusegun Obasanjo.
The Nigerian Institution of Civil Engineers also established the Annual Engr. (Rev.) Ette Ikpong Ikpong Etteh Distinguished Lecture Series in his honour, a lasting recognition of his contribution to civil engineering and professional development in Nigeria.
As Akwa Ibom celebrates 39 years of Statehood, Engr. (Rev.) Ette Ikpong Ikpong Etteh, OFR, stands among the State’s distinguished leading lights as a notable PRIDE.
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