SON vows to slash sub-standard products by 30%

The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has promised to reduce the level of sub-standard products in the country from the current 40 percent level to 10 percent by the end of the year.

Joseph Odumodu, director-general/CEO, SON, gave this assurance in Lagos at an expanded stakeholders seminar.

Odumodu said the current level of sub-standard products in the country is unacceptable to the federal government, stressing that his organisation will ensure that life-threatening products are adequately and decisively checked.

He urged all stakeholders to support Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to eliminate and check financial leakages and corruption in both public and private sectors of the nation’s economy.

The SON boss described Nigeria Integrated Customs Information System (NICIS), which the agency’s services and businesses have since been integrated, as a ‘Nigeria project that would enable us to transact businesses no matter where we are’, describing NICIS as a system that no longer allows anyone to come to SON’s offices across the country to seek certification.

“What we have done concerning developing trade portal and NICIS covers the following critical areas – converting all SON certifications and certificates to electronic format, online transmission of certificate to trade portal/NICIS by consignee for Form ‘M’ and Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) Consignment processing at the comfort of the person’s office, eliminating direct contact (visits to SON office for certification processing); providing HS Codes regulated by SON and the requirements for regulated products on www.trade.gov.ng/son as well as setting up a Customer/Consumer Helpdesk at Apapa, Lagos, and Abuja”, he said at the seminar entitled, ‘Trade Facilitation via Automation of SON’s Services’.

According to him, African leaders through the instrumentality of National Standards Bodies (NSBs) in Africa have been working towards creating a Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) by 2017 like the European Union and Latin American countries.

Representatives of several government agencies such as Central Bank of Nigeria, Trade and Exchange Commission, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Nigeria Customs Service, SON, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, NAGAFF, Council for Registration of Governemnt Approved Freight Forwarders, among others, graced the occasion.

ODINAKA ANUDU