Within the short period he had been on the saddle of the apex standards regulatory agency in the country, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Dr Paul Angya has shown tremendous commitment to the course of standardisation. He had approached the job from key angles of importance, in the sense that he is not just talking about regulation and enforcement alone, but also making the operating space permissive for end users of approved standards. This he has been doing, under the ambit of his five point agenda, which he unveiled in the course of interactions with the media in Lagos recently. He calls it the five-point agenda in the fight against sub-standardisation and these are staff engagement, expansion of SON’s facilities worldwide, inter-agency synergy, increased activities toward standardisation, and media engagement.
But the one that has necessitated this focus is the agency’s support for the acclaimed engine of growth of any economy, the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sub-sector, otherwise described as the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sub-sector. Beyond the existing relationship with MSMEs in the country, the incumbent DG has gone ahead to make things much easier through the introduction of a subsidy on standardisation. This is a commendable support to a sector that is already bugged down by such challenges as low manpower capacity, poor funding and stiff competition from mega firms, amongst others.
The subsidy provision for Nigerian MSMEs was a major fallout of the organisation’ s recent two-day training programmes held in the Benue capital of Makurdi.
Giving his keynote address at the event, the host governor, Dr Samuel Ortom expressed gratitude for the SON management in agreeing to partner the state in a such an important area. Ortom also expressed satisfaction at the high level of turnout of participants describing that as an adequate testimony of the willingness of the Benue people to identify with the development efforts of the government.
He said for decades, the MSME sector in the state in particular and in Nigerian in general, had operated below its potentials because of challenges confronting it, such challenges as production technicalities, cost structure, finance, poor infrastructure, management structure, marketing strategies; he added: ‘’it is in the bid to address some of these challenges that the SON is launching the subsidised charges on standardisation to MSMEs in Benue State. Standards are important instruments for specifying and determining the quality of products and services. It is our hope that this launch would provide us the opportunity to sensitise all stakeholders’’.
Ortom also expressed optimism that all SMEs in the state would imbibe quality in their operational processes and services, promising to put in place all efforts to support the realisation of the objectives of the training.
In her presentation, on training services offered by the SON, Mrs. Elsie Ofili, Head of Training Services of the organisation, enumerated the importance of training, especially to MSMEs, saying it enhances the capacity of staff to maintain the business, and such training help to keep staff members happy and confident. According to her, businesses are more likely to fail when they do not train staff, whereas those who receive training are more likely to give their best and ensure a success of the business.
On the necessity of training with the SON, she said it is important since the agency is the custodian and shaper of Nigeria’s Industrial standards and codes of practices for products and services
Not only does the SON have experience in harmonising products’ and services’ standards within West Africa and Africa; it also participates in the elaboration of international standards for management systems, examples being ISO 9001, ISO 22000 and ISO 17025.
According to her the training courses the SON runs include Quality Management System (QMS), Food Safety Management System (FSMS) and Environmental Management System (EMS2-6).
Director, Standards Development, Abiola Komolafe , who spoke on the benefits of standards and certification, said the main objectives of any manufacturer are to produce products acceptable to target customers; to remain in business, make profit and be competitive in domestic and international markets.
Describing quality and standards as valuable tools for industrial development he said standards could Mandatory or voluntary, depending on if they affect lives or properties or if they do not.
Whichever, Akomolafe submitted that standards are absolutely essential for reasons of fast and efficient production, achievement of compatibility and interoperability between products and so that consumer goods and products could become cheap, easily available and of the best quality.
Overall, this, he adds leads to improved quality of life by contributing to safety, human health and the protection of the environment.
Other points he raised are that standards could be useful in research and development/engineering, procurement of raw materials and management of operations/production.
‘’SON has made commendable efforts towards standards harmonisation within the ECOWAS sub region. Through standards harmonisation, SON has been able to collaborate with regional and international organisations in the areas of metrology, testing and quality assurance leading to enhancement of skills, encouragement of free trade and building of capacities’’.
Mr. Bayo Adegun, Director, Product Certification Department began his presentation by letting manufacturers know that having the product certification can be critical to ensuring ongoing commercial success and maintaining a competitive advantage and even ability for the product to be accepted in a new market place, especially with particular reference to export.
According to him, ‘’Product certification is mandatory in Nigeria and it is subject to legal enforcement; testing and certification in this circumstance can help you avoid financial risk, prosecution, harm to your reputation and claims for compensation and damages’’.
According to him, product certification involves an independent, third party assessing a manufacturer’s capability to constantly manufacture a product to a relevant standard, such as a Nigerian Industrial Standard. The process, he added involves both assessing the manufacturer’s production systems and facilities and selecting representative samples of finished product for testing.
Many companies use certification as a vehicle to open up new markets or to differentiate between products.
The advantages according to him are ‘’the ability to break into new markets and maximise the potential of existing markets with appropriate certification and compliant products;
Your products will stand out from your competitors. SON’s distinguished product certification mark is proudly displayed by companies whose products have been certified to any of our certification schemes and is a mark representing quality; most importantly, certification demonstrates to your current and prospective customers that your product has undergone a rigorous audit and testing process- providing them with peace of mind and confidence in your product. This reduces the need to duplicate test when importing or exporting’’.
A highpoint of the event was that it provided sufficient platform for the participants to interact and ask pertinent questions regarding their areas of interest. The availability of the management staff of the SON to provide clarifications on person to person basis contributed to the success of the programme.
While appreciating the efforts of the SON ,some of them hoped the gesture could be taken to other parts of the country, so that more MSMEs could be liberated.