The Director General of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Mallam Farouk Salim, recently disclosed the agency’s plans to amplify its campaign to make made-in-Nigeria products compete favourably in the global market.
While at a SON’s training for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and exhibition of MANCAP certified products, Salim noted that the agency had over the years, put in place capacity building programmes for MSMEs.
He said the discounts, waivers and product certification processes extended to MSMEs were to ensure the products and services offered meet the specified standards and are able to compete favourably in the international space.
Salim represented by Dr Richard Adewunmi, SON Marketing Director, during the three-day exhibition said that SON was also providing a proper testing platform for locally produced goods to prevent them from being rejected in the international markets
The SON boss said the agency was constructing new regional offices and rehabilitating old office buildings, while also working closely with state governments to provide land for construction of offices and laboratories to enable prompt service delivery to factories and MSMEs.
.“Today, the amended version of the statute, SON Act No. 14 of 2015, has not only given us more responsibilities but has also armed us with the powers to conduct search, arrest, prosecute and seal up facilities where they go contrary to its provisions.
Director, South West region, SON, Mrs Yeside Akinlabi, further urged consumers to patronise made-in-Nigeria products, saying such development will help to grow the economy, adding that made-in-Nigeria products are certified from raw materials to finished products.
