Apart from getting local products ready for export, the
agency is equally prepared to curb the rather high level of rejections faced by
the nation’s agro products at the international markets.The concerted efforts
are geared towards making locally made products especially agricultural
commodities acceptable and competitive particular in intra- African trade.
The Director General, SON, Mallam Farouk Salim, stated these
on the sidelines of the visit of SON Governing Council members to audit SON’s
facilities in Ogba area of Lagos recently.
According to him, most of the times when Nigerian goods are
rejected, it is due to failing to go through standard procedures locally before
exporting to other countries, saying that as long as exporters continue to
ignore local available standards, their products would not sail through global
market.
He added: “Exporters do not check the standards of the
country they are exporting to, so as long as our exporters ignore our
standards, they will still have their products rejected, but if they follow the
procedures, we are here to partner and assist them to make sure that their products
are accepted globally.”
“If the exporters come to us and they follow the product
standards of our country and the standards of the country they are exporting
to, then they should not have problems,”
He added that the standards that have been approved were
painstakingly developed through stakeholders’ inputs and considerations,
pointing out that it was an indication that standards body has been working
very hard to ensure that locally made products in this country are not only up
to standards, but produced for export.
“In December, we will have another council meeting to
approve new standards. Every standard we put out there is strategic to AfCFTA,
because when we establish our standards, it is expected for people who are
expecting our goods to look at the standards and then know that the products
approved are up to standards. So really, that is a guideline for everything you
can think of,” he said.
The SON boss declared: “Some of the standards approved have
to do with hair and now that people in that line of business now knows that
there is a standard for that kind of product in the market. We have standards
for food and feed. Anyone who is planning to go into fish farming can always
come to us to get this standard to start their fish farming business.
The reason why we develop standards is that when we are
shipping products from Nigeria to other country, you have a stamp on it and for
the person receiving this product would see the sign of quality on the products
and also realise that the product is meeting the set standards.”
He noted that standards are really important and critical
for the agency as part of the efforts to protect unsuspecting consumers from
sub-standard goods.
In his words, “The food standards are very important
especially for the fish feed standards that we have depending on the kind of
fish to be bred in your fish farm. You can use the standards to mix your own
fish feed and it means you do not have to import the fish feeds.
The same thing you have for poultry. The standards are out
there whether you are out to boost meat production or egg laying. The same for
cattle either for milk or meat production.”
Earlier, the Chairperson, SON Governing Council, Mrs. Evelyn
Ngige, said a total of 37 new standards has been unveiled to boost Nigeria’s
industrial development. She 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, thermoplastic
pipes, human and synthetic hair extension.
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