Every engineering graduate in Indonesia is now required to have an engineering certificate to ensure the feasibility and safety of development results.

Based on Law Number 11 of 2014 concerning Engineering, every engineer must comply with the technical standards that have been set.

"Some people still don't realize the importance of this regulation, even though the law states that violations of these standards can be considered malpractice," said Chairman of the West Sumatra Indonesian Engineers Association (PII), Nasirman Chan, on Thursday (17/ 10) in Padang.

Nasirman emphasized that to avoid malpractice in construction, it is very important for every project to follow applicable engineering rules and standards.

In this way, both workers and the results of their work in the form of buildings will be guaranteed and function properly. Many engineers work in government, but not all of them understand the importance of engineering certification.

"There are still many who do not have a license or practice permit. Therefore, outreach regarding the importance of this certification is very necessary so that every engineer can work according to the standards that have been set," continued Nasirman.

Currently, the number of engineering and agricultural graduates in West Sumatra has not been fully recorded in detail.

However, from data from the Indonesian Engineers Association (PII) West Sumatra Region, there are 2,294 members, and only 640 of them have an Engineer Registration Certificate (STRI). This means that most engineering graduates in the region do not yet have certification.

Therefore, PII West Sumatra will continue to encourage outreach to increase public and other expertise communities' awareness of the importance of this certification.

To make the engineering certification program a success, PII West Sumatra is collaborating with Padang State University (UNP) which has produced thousands of engineering graduates every year.

“Universities have an important role in producing prospective engineers. "We hope that UNP and other institutions can be more active in providing education to engineering, agriculture, fisheries, marine and animal husbandry students, so that in the future they can be ready with the necessary certification," said Nasirman.

The Chancellor of UNP, Krismadinata, revealed that currently his campus has more than 5,300 engineering students, with 1,000 graduates every year. Around 500 of them are fresh graduates who are ready to enter the world of work.

"UNP is currently preparing a professional engineering education program, which is expected to strengthen the competence of its graduates. Every engineer involved in the world of engineering must be certified," said Krismadinata.

Law Number 11 of 2014 and Government Regulation Number 25 of 2019 confirm that engineers who work without certification can be subject to sanctions.

"A person who practices in the engineering field without a certificate can be sentenced to two years in prison. Meanwhile, if his negligence causes an accident or harm, the sentence can be up to 10 years in prison," explained Nasirman. UNP is committed to continuing to improve the quality of professional engineering education in West Sumatra.

Krismadinata stated that the professional engineering education program being developed is not only taught by academic lecturers, but also involves professional engineers from PII.

"With this collaboration, we hope that UNP can produce graduates who are more competent and ready to compete in the world of work," he concluded.