By Valentine Amanze, Online Editor
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Kano branch, has advocated for proper positioning of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) at the nation’s entry points in preparation for the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
National Vice President of MAN, North West Zone, Alhaji Ali Madugu, made the appeal, while receiving the Director General, SON, Mallam Farouk Salim, who was on a working visit to Kano State.
Madugu also called for SON’s quality verification of all imported products including those from West African countries, even with the rule of origin in the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme.
He pointed out that the commencement of the AfCFTA further underscored the need for SON’s presence at the entry points to prevent Nigeria from being turned into a dumping ground of substandard, fake and counterfeited products from other African countries.
He appealed for product authentication as an additional tool to fight faking, adulteration and unfair competition with substandard products in the market and urged SON to look at the best way to implement it without putting genuine manufacturers at disadvantage in terms of cost and the procedure for compliance.
The MAN national vice president, however, commended Salim’s approach to addressing the concerns of about 140-member North West branch of MAN and enumerated issues for his further consideration.
These, according to him, include:
– Decentralisation of SON testing facilities through building of additional laboratories across the country, including Kano;
– Easier processing of import documents without necessarily visiting SON headquarters in Abuja;
– Greater protection of local manufacturers’ MANCAP certified products from adulteration and faking of their brands in Nigeria and overseas as well as unfair competition with substandard imports.
Other members of the North West Branch of MAN Executive Committee called for an upgrade and enlightenment of members on the SON offshore conformity assessment programme (SONCAP) portal, as well as the inspection procedure, sampling and testing relating to the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) for locally manufactured products.
Responding, Mallam Farouk Salim explained that SON was set up to provide technical assistance and support to genuine local manufacturers as well as protect them from unfair competition from substandard products.
He acknowledged their sacrifices through investment in infrastructure, creation of job opportunities and regular payment of taxes as part of growing the nation’s wealth and assured them of his commitment and support.
His words: “We need to partner with MAN to protect genuine manufacturers and legitimate importers by sharing intelligence to apprehend and prosecute standards infractions. With adequate consequences for actions, most people will follow the rules.”
He also decried the current situation where SON was unable to carry out quality verification of all its regulated imported products at the points of entry nor accost suspected substandard products outside the ports.
Salim said that efficient service delivery remained his focus and invited MAN to pull forces together with SON for collective success in the interest of the nation’s economy and the wellbeing of its people.
The SON chief executive however asked MAN and other stakeholders to look forward to seamless and robust deployment of information communication technology to enhance the agency’s delivery of efficient services and an appreciable reduction in turnaround time for standards development, product certification and registration amongst others.
He invited MAN members to work with SON to further protect their brands through the deployment of a product authentication scheme to empower consumers at the point of purchase.
He said, “We need a symbiotic relationship to succeed without loss of business and relevance. “While I call for genuine partnership with MAN and other stakeholders, SON would not back down from implementing the law by diligent prosecution of standards infractions.”
