Year
1946Duration
80 yearsCost
NALocation
Commonwealth countriesProject achievements
80 years of being the voice for engineering in the Commonwealth
The Commonwealth Engineers' Council (CEC) is a global network that aims to "advance the science, art and practice of engineering for the benefit of humankind".
Its origins date back to the autumn of 1945. The ICE secretary at the time, E Graham Clark, suggested that engineering institutions from across the Commonwealth come together to increase collaboration in the wake of World War II, which had only recently ended.
And so, in September 1946, representatives of engineering institutions in Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK met in London.
At that meeting, they agreed to establish the Commonwealth Engineering Conference, later renamed the Commonwealth Engineers Council.
In 1968, CEC was one of the engineering bodies that founded the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO). In recent years, CEC annual meetings have been held alongside the WFEO General Assembly.
By the late 1980s, the council had expanded to many other Commonwealth countries, including: Bangladesh, Cyprus, Fiji, Ghana, Hong Kong, Kenya, Malta, Mauritius, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Uganda, Zambia, among others.
By the 2000s, this grew to include all Commonwealth engineering institutions.
Did you know …
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To help tackle the shortage of engineers in rapidly developing Commonwealth countries, in 2026 the CEC is undertaking a benchmarking survey of engineering capacity and capability.
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The data gathered will create a map of engineering capability, identify gaps and propose solutions to close those gaps.
Fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange
The CEC works to strengthen collaboration and knowledge-sharing among engineering institutions across the Commonwealth.
It promotes engineering education, training, and professional development and qualifications. It aims to facilitate greater international mobility of engineers across member countries.
The council also champions equity, diversity, inclusion, ethical standards, and the transfer of technology and expertise to address shared challenges.
Through meetings, projects, virtual networks, and opportunities for young engineers, it fosters engagement, innovation, and cooperation across the global engineering community.
CEC and the ICE
The CEC and the ICE have a long-standing history.
As well as being part of the council's founding, the ICE has served as the secretariat to the CEC since 1983. The CEC's official headquarters are the ICE's own: One Great George Street in London.
More recently, in 2013, ICE Past President Professor Paul Jowitt became CEC President. He held this post until 2023, when Dawn Bonfield MBE, who is also an ICE Fellow, took the post. She was president until October 2025.
In 2018, the CEC hosted an event at the Global Engineering Congress held at the ICE in London, as part of the institution's 200th anniversary celebrations.
Collaboration between the council and the institution is ongoing.
