The Director-General, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Farouk Salim, has reiterated the organisation’s support for local manufacturers and made-in-Nigeria goods in playing critical roles in providing long-term solutions to the nation’s security and economic woes.
The SON helmsman asserted this recently during a whistle-stop working visit to four manufacturing companies at different locations within Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, as part of the mandate SON in engaging stakeholders on matters of standards and quality assurance.
In separate meetings with the Chief Executives of Notore Nigeria Plc, Indorama Nigeria Plc, Bua Group, and Dufil Nigeria Limited at their different factory locations, Salim’s underlying message in his remarks, centred on the impact of the importation and patronage of substandard goods, which are killing the Nigeria manufacturing base and fuelling insecurity.
According to him, many manufacturing companies have shut down in the past few years, because they cannot compete with the influx of substandard goods imported into the country and the insatiable preference of some Nigerians for cheap substitutes of products readily manufactured in Nigeria which are actually of higher quality.
Describing the nexus between substandard goods, closure of companies and insecurity in the nation, Salim argued that the lack of patronage and relevant infrastructure has resulted in factory closures with resultant unemployment, which has led many into the crime of banditry, terrorism and kidnapping.
Salim noted that if the teeming youths were gainfully employed, the incidence of these violent crimes will be minimal because there would be available disposable income for citizens to meet basic needs, therefore the lure for crime will be reduced.
…the lack of patronage and relevant infrastructure has resulted in factory closures with resultant unemployment, which has led many into the crime of banditry, terrorism and kidnapping.
Growing the economy
The DG, consequently, advised Nigerians to stop the importation and patronage of substandard goods and rather look inwards to patronize quality goods made by Nigerian manufacturers to reduce crime and grow the local economy.
He also used the fora with the companies’ Chief Executives to enlighten them of SON’s competencies in the areas of testing products at the organisation’s laboratory complex,
This comprises 38 individual labs, and the accredited Food, Electrical/Electronics and Chemical Technology labs as well as facilitating world-class ISO Management System Certification and other ISO training through the organisation’s internationally accredited Training Centre.
According to Salim, besides ensuring manufacturing conformity, SON is also ready to collaborate with the industry in improving its products and services by offering world-class training in several areas.
These are Management Systems, Health and Occupational Hazard, Environmental management systems, Food Safety Management Systems and many other courses at very affordable rates in the local currency and executable on-site for the companies.
The DG mentioned other interventions, such as in the area of Metrology, in which the Organisation is the statutory custodian of the standards fulfilling the requirements of providing a National Quality Infrastructure (NQI), with an improved capacity of calibrating weighing equipment through its newly acquired mobile calibration trucks.
He added that these calibration trucks can be dispatched to any part of the country to effectively calibrate weighbridges and weighing equipment in factories and manufacturing plants for companies to meet quality assurance targets.
According to Salim, all these and more are the interventions SON has been executing to protect local industries and to ensure they remain functional in a healthy, competitive atmosphere to boost the nation’s socio-economic fortunes.
