THE significance of having brands and products conform to required standards before being displayed in the open market in Nigeria was, again, brought to the fore at the just-concluded exhibition of MANCAP-certified products, organized by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), to mark its golden jubilee anniversary.
The agency explained that the three-day event, featuring over 200 brands from different sectors of the nation’s economy, was designed to drive home the importance of its Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) seals for goods produced in Nigeria.
The Director General and Chief Executive Officer, SON, Mallam Farouk Salim, explained that besides creating awareness for products with MANCAP seals, the three-day exhibition also served as an avenue for consumers to identify such products with this quality mark, and separate them from others without the seal.
Farouk, who was represented by the agency’s Director of Marketing, Mr. Richard Adewumi, stated that the 50th anniversary, was being used to raise the consciousness about the significance of standardization among the consumers, regulators and industries alike.
“These companies that you see display their products here today are companies that have been certified, and deemed to have met some specific standards, and so we thought it’s important to showcase them to Nigerians that any product you see here are those that have been tested and certified okay by SON,” he added.
According to him, the participants had been carefully selected from different sectors of the economy, such as food and beverages, construction. Mechanical, Electrical and Electronics and many others.
He argued that though the fight against sub-standard products in Nigeria, was far from being won, the agency, he noted, had, however, been able to make some inroads, as evident in the number of companies presently submitting their products for certification with the agency.
The SON’s boss however stressed the need for the Nigerian consumersto always look out for the MANCAP logo on the products they intend to purchase before making payment.
He added that the organization would be presenting awards to companies that had consistently maintained quality, and had also helped the agency in the achievement of its mandate.
“The recognition aims at encouraging other companies to embrace standardisation and quality assurance,” he stated.
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The Director, Lagos Office, SON, Mrs. Talatu Ethan, explained that the MANCAP and ISO marks represent the agency’s approval seals.
“The exhibition is therefore organized to showcase some of the products that have gotten the MANCAP seals of the agency, celebrate them and let the public know the importance of the MANCAP seals on any product in the country.
“The MANCAP seal is our own way of authenticate the quality and standards of any product, and that is the more reason we feel this exhibition is necessary to celebrate those with the seals, and encourage those yet to get such standardization seal to immediately commence the process of getting it,” she stated.
Commending the agency on its fight against substandard products in the country, Compliance/Regulatory Affairs Manager, Flour Mills of Nigeria and representative of the Food Industry, at the event, Mrs. Ada Amogu, noted that the efforts of the agency had gone a long way in bringing sanity into the food industry, and enhance consumers’ confidence in the sector.
She added that though the sector had always thrived on self-regulation, it had also enjoyed a good working relationship with SON in the past few decades.
