On the 7th of November, 2025, the European Council of Engineers Chambers (ECEC) held its General Assembly Meeting (GAM) in Nicosia, Cyprus, hosted by the Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber (ETEK). Representatives from all 17 member organisations gathered to discuss current challenges, exchange ideas, and develop common positions to shape the future of the engineering profession in Europe. The meeting was also attended by the Presidents of the European Council of Civil Engineers (ECCE) and the International Safety and Health Construction Coordinators Organization (ISHCCO), underlining the strong spirit of cooperation between European engineering organisations.
Nina Dražin Lovrec, ECEC President and President of the Croatian Chamber of Civil Engineers, highlighted in her opening address the numerous achievements of the ECEC since its last meeting in May in Luxembourg, among which the Luxembourg Declaration on Public Procurement stands out. This declaration, bringing together almost 1.5 million engineers and architects across Europe, promotes quality, innovation, and fair market competition, and many of its key principles have already been reflected in the European Parliament’s resolution on the revision of the Public Procurement Directive.
One of the key topics of this year’s General Assembly was the important topic of Digitalisation. The results of the two recent ECEC surveys “Digitalisation in Civil Construction” and “BIM in Construction” met with great interest and participants learned from a Best Practice example from Croatia, the Croatian “Physical Planning Information System (ISPU)”, presented by Hrvoje Đumlić, Head of Application Development Service at the Croatian Ministry of Physical Planning, Construction and State Assets. Participants engaged in an insightful discussion after his explanations on the digital transformation of public services in the construction sector.
Further priority topics discussed were the Revision of the Public Procurement Directive, Affordable Housing, and the Common Training Framework. As for the Revision of the Public Procurement Directive, the ECEC will share its feedback to the Public Consultation and Call for Evidence open until January 2026 with all member organisations once ready and asked the member organisations for their participation in the consultation. Participants agreed on an aligned approach based on items raised in the Luxembourg Declaration. An ECEC position paper on Housing is currently under way, also in view of the preparation of a first ever European Affordable Housing Plan by the European Commission, which met with great interest and participants engaged in lively discussions on the topic. In addition, member organisations were updated on the latest developments regarding the Common Training Framework, where a study investigating for which further professions a CTF should be developed is planned by the European Commission for 2026.
Another special moment of the event was the presentation of the ECEC Award of Honour to former ECEC Treasurer Gabor Szöllössy, recognising his exceptional dedication, tireless energy, and long-standing commitment to the interests of European Chartered Engineers. The award expresses the deep appreciation of ECEC for his remarkable contributions to the ECEC and the engineering profession.
One highlight followed another: During the Assembly, ECEC also proudly signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Safety and Health Construction Coordinators Organization (ISHCCO). The agreement marks the beginning of a closer collaboration in the fields of education, communication, and joint events, with a particular focus on public procurement and minimum qualification requirements. ISHCCO, as one of the signatories of the Luxembourg Declaration, shares ECEC’s commitment to promoting safety, quality, and excellence in the European engineering sector.
ECEC sincerely thanks the Cypriot Chamber ETEK for their warm welcome and great organisation of this meaningful event and is looking forward to the next GAM on May 7-8, 2026, in Madrid.
