Principal Civil Infrastructure Engineer

MSc in Transport Planning and Engineering
B.Eng. (Hons) Civil Engineering
Engineering Project Management Certificate (Rice University)
MSLIE, P.Eng.

Sidi Sowa is a Principal Civil Infrastructure Engineer with over fifteen (15) years of progressive experience in civil infrastructure, transportation, energy, water resources, and multidisciplinary engineering consultancy in Sierra Leone. He currently serves as the Principal Engineer and Manager of the General and Support Engineering Services Department at CEMMATS Group Limited, where he leads multidisciplinary engineering teams in the planning, design, feasibility assessment, project management, and construction supervision of major infrastructure projects.

He has successfully managed and coordinated numerous nationally significant projects funded by the World Bank, Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), International Labour Organization (ILO), Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), and private sector developers. His recent assignments include Project Manager for the rehabilitation and construction supervision of the 21.8 km Tondola–Bunumbu Road, Project Manager for the Bekongor III Hydropower Project feasibility study, Project Manager for urban transport studies under the Sierra Leone Connectivity and Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure Project (SL-CAMIP), and Project Management Support for the electrification of healthcare facilities through renewable energy solutions. He also provides technical coordination and engineering support for major power transmission, solar energy, and electricity distribution projects under the Enhancing Sierra Leone Energy Access Project (ESLEAP) and the Regional Emergency Solar Power Intervention (RESPITE) Project.

Sidi possesses extensive experience in feasibility studies, transportation planning, traffic engineering, highway design, hydrological and geotechnical investigations, rural water supply systems, renewable energy infrastructure, environmental and social impact studies, and construction supervision. He has played key technical roles in several strategic infrastructure programmes, including the MCC Sierra Leone Compact Power Sector Infrastructure Feasibility Studies, the Bekongor III Hydropower Project, Newton Solar Project, Kenema Solar Project, Bumbuna II Hydropower Project, Sierra Leone Water Company (SALWACO) Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project, and numerous road infrastructure projects for the Sierra Leone Roads Authority.

Throughout his career at CEMMATS, Sidi has contributed to multidisciplinary environmental and engineering studies as a Civil Engineer, Transportation Engineer, Hydrologist, Soils Specialist, and Water Quality Engineer for clients including Lahmeyer International, Gold Tree Limited, Regimanuel Gray Estate, Sierra Rutile Limited, Sierra Block Concrete Products Limited, and several international development partners.

His professional expertise includes engineering project management, transportation and highway engineering, traffic and road safety studies, feasibility studies, civil infrastructure design, construction supervision, structural and architectural design, hydrological investigations, computer-aided engineering design (AutoCAD, Civil 3D and Revit), and contract administration. He is recognised for delivering complex multidisciplinary projects while ensuring quality, stakeholder coordination, environmental and social compliance, and adherence to international engineering standards.

Sidi was awarded the Best Engineering Project Award by the Sierra Leone Institution of Engineers for his undergraduate engineering design project on the expansion of the Civil Engineering Building at Fourah Bay College. He holds a Master’s degree in Transport Planning and Engineering from Edinburgh Napier University, United Kingdom, a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Civil Engineering from Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, and professional certifications in Engineering Project Management and Project Management. He is a Corporate Member of the Sierra Leone Institution of Engineers (MSLIE) and a registered Professional Engineer with the Professional Engineering Registration Council (PERC) of Sierra Leone.