The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has urged manufacturers and other certified organisations to sustain compliance with prescribed standards.
This is with a view to maintaining confidence of consumers and expanding access to local and international markets.
The Director, SON Lagos Region, Mrs Theresa Ojomo, representing the Director-General of SON, gave the advice at the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) Special Economic Zones Conformity Assessment Programme (SEZCAP) formal presentation of certificates to certified organisations in Lagos.
Ojomo said the certification was not the end of the compliance process, but the beginning of a continuous partnership between SON and the beneficiaries.
She said the certification demonstrated the recipients’ commitment to quality, transparency, operational integrity and global best practices.
“The presentation of these certificates today is a testimony to your dedication to quality, transparency and operational integrity in your respective sectors.
“By achieving this benchmark, you have not only elevated your organisational credibility, but also contributed meaningfully to our collective national good and public trust,” she said.
Ojomo urged manufacturers to sustain the standards required for certification and work with SON to ensure that their products complied with the Nigeria Industrial Standards (NIS).
She explained that SON certification marked with unique identification numbers, helped consumers authenticate products and distinguish genuine products from substandard ones.
According to her, manufacturers can also pursue harmonised certification schemes to facilitate access to markets across Africa and other parts of the world.
She said Nigeria had the capacity to produce quality goods for local consumption and export, urging manufacturers, irrespective of their size, to take advantage of SON’s regulatory support.
“Let us produce in Nigeria. We have so much produce in Nigeria. Just turn that into products and we can export and grow the economy of the country,” she said.
She assured manufacturers that SON would continue to collaborate with other regulatory agencies and provide guidance to help their businesses meet required standards.
Also speaking, the Assistant Director, MANCAP, Mr Ekokeme Prete, representing the Head of MANCAP, said the scheme was established to ensure that products manufactured in Nigeria met the relevant NIS requirements.
Prete said recipients of the certificates were expected to maintain consistency in the quality of their products throughout the validity period of their certificates.
He explained that manufacturers must continue to meet relevant requirements, including applicable product specifications and testing criteria.
According to him, the confidence attached to the certification places a responsibility on manufacturers to ensure that consumers receive value for their money.
He urged the beneficiaries to maintain quality standards to qualify for renewal of their certificates after the three-year validity period.
The State Coordinator, SON Lagos Office II, Mrs Maryrose Ugwueche, warned recipients against compromising the standards that earned them certification.
Ugwueche said SON would continue to monitor certified products in the market through inspections and testing.
She urged manufacturers to regard certification as a responsibility to consumers and not merely as an achievement.
“Once we issue your certificate, our eyes will be seriously on you. Please, there is no shortcut to certification,” she said.
The State Coordinator, SON Lagos Office III, Mrs Oluwafunmilayo Oludunke, stressed the importance of proper documentation in maintaining quality management systems.
Oludunke said organisations should document their processes and maintain records as evidence of activities carried out.
She explained that documented information included procedures, standard operating procedures, checklists, inspection reports, test results and minutes of meetings.
She said documents should be properly controlled, with relevant details such as title, issue date and reference number, while access should be restricted to authorised personnel where necessary.
According to her, confidentiality, integrity and availability were essential principles in managing organisational documents.
The Chairman, Eagle Industry, Mr Uchendu Okuwa in a goodwill message, urged organisations to embrace continuous improvement and conduct regular self-inspections to identify and address gaps in their operations.
He said organisations should not rely solely on external inspections to improve their processes, but should regularly review their systems and close identified gaps.
He encouraged the beneficiaries to see the certification as an opportunity to improve their operations and contribute to the development of the country.
Earlier, the State Coordinator, SON Lagos Office I and host of the programme, Mrs Orekoya Bolanle, welcomed the beneficiaries to the formal presentation of certificates.
Orekoya urged the recipients to keep their certificates and other relevant documents safe, noting that the documents represented their compliance with the required standards.
She congratulated the beneficiaries and urged them to sustain the standards for which they were certified.(NAN)
