The quest to prepare homegrown businesses for the export market has remained a very herculean task as a combination of factors has made that dream a mirage. But thankfully, with concerted efforts by some ministry, department and agencies of government amongst other relevant stakeholders, the narrative is fast changing.
Nigerian businesses with an eye for the overseas market have always suffered rejection because the majority of their products could not pass stress tests conducted by the foreign offices upon arrival at the port of entry, thus further stifling their growth as well as crowding them entirely out of global relevance and reckoning.
Rejection galore
Worst hit by the spectre of rejection were small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) operating within the agrarian sector of the economy including produce merchants, smallholder farmers and others across the value chain of the agro-allied sectors.
Oftentimes than not, efforts by the Federal Government to make export bound products from Nigeria acceptable have repeatedly failed in the past due to complaints that are directly or remotely linked to quality, standard, certification and appropriate packaging.
From perishable consumables to finished products, exporters have faced rejection of their products in the International markets mostly because they fail to meet up with the standards set by the destination country’s regulatory authorities. Sanitary and phytosanitary issues in foods have been major grounds for the rejection of Nigerian food exports.
SON to the rescue
In its determination to address some of the teething challenges bedeviling the SMEs, SON refocused and strengthened its support for SMEs, in pursuit of the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, ERGP.
Checks on SON website revealed that the standards body has since done a lot to deal with product counterfeiters primarily in the interest of manufacturers just as it has been promoting SMEs’ development across the country.
The agency is part and parcel of the Federal Government’s efforts and initiatives, be it the Presidential Industrial Competitiveness Advisory Council, Presidential Economic Council as well as the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, also known as Ease of Doing Business. All these are geared towards rapid industrial/economic development.
“SON is a business facilitator rather than a body out to stifle industrial and business development. Our products need to be acceptable and competitive locally and globally; meaning that they must meet global standards and international best practices. This, among others, is what the SON Act is meant to ensure. Local industries need to survive and enjoy fair competition with imported goods. As a regulator, this is the work of SON. The agency provides an enabling environment for businesses to thrive. Let us embrace standards and all its attendant benefits, thereby advancing industrial and economic development as well as the rights of consumers and end- users.”
“Sub-standard products must be removed completely from our markets while the purveyors are to face severe sanctions if and when caught. We are aligning with the government in its concerted effort to diversify the economy, with a re-invigorated focus on commerce, industry and agriculture. If and when things stabilise in these sectors, there would be massive employment and job creation.”
Setting standards for industrial development
In its quest to boost industrial development of the country the SON recently unveiled a total of 37 new standards.
Justifying the move, the standards body stated that the move became inevitable following the introduction of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), saying that Nigeria’s product must adhere strictly to global best practices to be competitive when the trade pact officially commences.
The Chairman, SON Governing Council, Mrs. Evelyn Ngige during the visit of SON Governing Council to audit SON’s facilities in Ogba area of Lagos, explained that three out of the 37 new standards were reviewed, eight were newly developed while 26 have been adopted for the existing international standards.
According to her, the approved standards which cut across various sectors of the Nigerian economy are in line with the approved Nigerian Industrial Standardisation Strategy which focuses on stakeholders and market demands for optimisation of available resources.
She noted that 10 of the standards are developed for chemical technology in particular for plastic piping products, thermoplast pipes, human and synthetic hair extension.
“It is important to state that SON recently developed testing capacity at the Ogba laboratory complex for the testing of plastic from raw materials to finished products,” she stated.
She said the test would to a large extent provide opportunities for manufacturers and dealers in plastic products to be competitive locally as well as take advantage of the AfCFTA to improve the nation’s economy.
She said the next 17 approved standards are in the mechanical sector which is focused on agriculture to support the federal government’s economic diversification agenda which include standards for irrigation and crop protection equipment.
“We have also approved eight Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS) for use in the food sector, liquor, spirits, primary production of milk, candies, fruit nectars, soya drink and alcoholic bitters,” she added.
She further stated that two new and unique standards have also been approved for masonry and carpentry services to meet the yearnings of Nigerians for quality in Nigeria’s building and construction sector.
Laboratories
For the Director-General of SON, Mallam Farouk Salim one line item that has enabled SON to track development within the business firmament is the running efficient laboratories.
While chronicling the milestone achieved by the organisation in the area of laboratory services, Salim said SON laboratories embarked on the journey of accreditation as far back as the year 2009, which led to the accreditation of Food Technology Laboratory in areas of Biological and Chemical Testing in 2014 by American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA).
These are being maintained and sustained with the support and commitment of Management to the highly dedicated laboratory personnel. Today, we are celebrating the accreditation of three more Laboratories here at SON Laboratory Complex at Ogba.”
The laboratories accredited on the day in accordance with the recognised ISO/IEC 17025:2017-General requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories include the Cable Testing Laboratory, Micronutrients Testing Laboratory and the Paint Testing Laboratory
“The accreditation demonstrates technical competence for defined scopes to perform tests on Food, Paint and Electrical cables products including Chemical (Micronutrients) Testing which covers parameters such as; Iodine in Iodized Salt; Vitamin A (Retinol) in Foods; Lead Content in Paint; Non-Volatile Matter (%) in Paint; Specular Gloss (%) in Paint as well as Electrical (Cable) Testing which covers parameters such as Conductor Resistance at 20 degrees Celcius, Elongations at Break for Insulation, Tensile Strength Tests for Insulations, among others,” the SON boss stated.
In addition to competencies of the newly accredited laboratories, SON’s Food Technology laboratories have competence in testing food samples in Physico-chemical parameters such a Moisture, Ash, Protein, Fat, Crude Fibre, Heavy Metals). Other areas of competence of the laboratories include Microbiology parameters (Aerobic Plate Count, Coliforms, Escherichia coli, Yeasts and Mould, Salmonella spp, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterobacteriaceae).
Speaking on the relevance of the accreditation Salim said it ensures acceptance of test results within and beyond borders, greater control of laboratory processes, customer satisfaction based on the integrity of the results and brand value addition.
According to him, it is intended to also promote local content by offering subsidised and quality testing services to local manufacturers and Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) as well as facilitate income generation through maximization of costs for local manufacturers who would not need to send products across borders for pre-shipment testing for goods meant for export.
He said, “Accreditation of our labs would facilitate global recognition thereby facilitating trade across the borders, enhancing and promoting the global competitiveness of made in Nigeria goods through quality testing services thereby reducing the incidence of rejection of exported goods by offering quality testing services for farm produce that is meant for exports.”
The SON DG used the opportunity to call on all stakeholders to partner with the organisation by patronising all the accredited SON Laboratories in the field of Food Testing, Chemical Testing and Electrical Testing.
Presently, SON has five principal laboratories located around the country. These include the Food Technology Laboratories, the Chemical Technology Laboratories and the Electrical/Electronic Laboratory, all located in Lekki, Lagos State.
There is also an Engineering Laboratory, located in Emene, Enugu state for the purpose of carrying out engineering tests in Mechanical Engineering Tests: Tensile, impact, complete metallographic, chemical analysis of metals, tensile tests etc.
SON also has a Textile and Leather Laboratory located in Kaduna that is equipped to carry out a comprehensive analysis of Textile and Leather products.
The immediate past Director, Laboratory Services, Mrs Mojisola Kehinde under whom some of the milestones were achieved described the accreditation of the SON laboratories as ‘hard-earned.
Kehinde said, “Ever since 2009 that the journey of Accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 (General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories) began which yielded fruit in the accreditation of Food Technology Laboratory in 2014, the quest to have all laboratories accredited has been on the front burner.”
Testing services, as offered by SON enable effective performance of quality assurance activities during the implementation of standards.
The tests carried out are mainly third-party conformity assessment of products using the relevant Nigerian Industrial Standards or any other applicable international standards.
While SON is developing its competence in laboratory services, it has also stepped up calibration services presently offered to industries, government agencies, research institutions, testing laboratories in various fields of metrology namely; mass, length, temperature and pressure.
SON is the custodian of the National Primary Measurement Standards in the country and has been officially designated as the National Metrology Institute (NMI) of Nigeria.
The National Metrology Institute (NMI) in SON is responsible for Scientific Metrology while the Weights & Measures Department (WMD) of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade & Investment (FMITI) oversees the formulation and implementation of policies for Legal Metrology.
Thumbs up by stakeholders
The Cable Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (CAMAN) has extolled the Standards Organisation of Nigeria’s (SON’s) effort to sanitise the nation’s through its enforcement exercises across the country.
The president CAMAN, Mrs. Bukola Adubi has commended the standards body’s effort to stem the preponderance of fake and substandard goods in the country.
According to her, CAMAN has been having several conversations about how best to stop the menace, saying that adulteration has been hitting deep into manufacturers’ bottom lines.
“Some of us unfortunately have been blacklisted by some major companies because they seemingly bought cables from the market and it has had issues. So this is affecting our legacy, it is affecting our brands, it is affecting our bottom lines. So coming here to see what SON is doing is very heartwarming,” she said.
She added: “I am very happy and I can go back comfortably and confidently telling my people that SON has got our backs and given some time, we will see an end to it.”
She restated the association’s commitment to support SON to fight against the prevalence of adulteration and substandard goods in the country.
She stated that the decision to order SON out of the port is not the best decision, saying the fight against substandard goods should be fought at the ports and not in the markets.
“Having SON officials chase containers on the highways is pointless because these greedy importers have different strategies to beat SON. SON has to go back to the port. They need to go back to where these products are emanating from and nip it in the bud. Lives and property are at stake. People are dying because of these products,” she lamented.
The Deputy Vice President, University of Benin, Prof Ray Ozolua, said one of the major advantages of standardisation is the ability to cross borders, saying that the harmonisation of standards would make products acceptable anywhere on the continent.
“So standards are really the platform on which we will leverage and deliver our services, not just within our continent, but to the world and we do know that yes, when it comes to active pharmaceutical ingredients, we will probably be playing catch up with the rest of the world because they are already far ahead. Well, when it comes to herbals, we can lead and if we do make products, our herbal medicines, for example, to meet standards, then the world will use them,” he said.
He stated that substandard goods are killing the pharmaceutical industry, because the unscrupulous individuals who engage in substandard goods set out cheaper and cut corners to make profits.
“Substandard goods threaten and kill the industry eventually and as you can see, for those who are old enough, if you look back 30 years head on, as our pharmaceutical industry grew. No, it has shrunk because they can’t compete with substandard goods,” he added.
On his part, a Professor at the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) Olobayo Kunle, said people need to be awakened to the dangers of substandard goods, advising that substandard products are doing more harm than good.
“He commended the federal government for returning SON back to the port, adding that fighting fake and substandard goods are best fought at the point of entries.
A partnership that works
In its bid to ensure that Nigerian products are globally competitive, the SON in the recent past carried out the certification of products of SMEs for free.
Despite well over 30,000 registered SMEs in the country, most products in the country cannot compete favourably in the global market due to non-conformity to standards.
According to Adiukwu Thomas, most small scale enterprises have refused to be certified considering the cost but with a promise to carry out the certification process free of charge henceforth.
This, he said, would enable operators in the sector to be a player in the global market.
Investigation by our correspondent also revealed that the Small Medium Enterprises Development Association of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has continued to drum up support for the standardisation in the SME sector rather than compromise standard.
“We are delighted that SON is offering a free certificate for the SMEs operators. We look forward to more partnership with SON and other agencies,” Thomas said.
Ms Catherine Abbah, CEO, Octopus Chubete Ltd, Abuja, who deals in processed groundnut oil and kulikuli, groundnut in paste form which she exports to neighbouring countries within the West African sub-region confided in The Nation that thanks to SON’s certification a lot of her products have been foreign-bound and receiving patronages overseas.
