SON advocates patronage of made-in-Nigeria products

Standards Organisation of Nigeria

The Standard Organisation of Nigeria has urged residents to patronise made-in-Nigeria, especially those with the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme logo

This, SON said would boost the economy and give the required value for money.

Speaking at the Federal Secretariat on Tuesday, during the issuance of three certificates to Hara Foam, Ugo Paint and Elshadai facemasks, the state Coordinator, SON Gombe office, Mohammed Bukar, emphasised the essence of the certification, adding that it signifies quality.

Bukar disclosed that products with MANCAP logos can compete favourably in the market including internationally.

He said, “What we did today was a mancap certificate presentation to three companies Hara Foam, Ugo Paint, Elshadai. The certification is a process that is ongoing since 2006 to make sure consumers get value for their money.

“The companies passed through the rigorous process of MANCAP factory inspections and tests on their products. Normally, the process is to pass the test three consecutive times before the certification. With these certifications, the products can compete anywhere and it’s advisable to buy such products because of the mark of quality.

“Anyone that buys these products with MANCAP the assurance is not just for nothing. Our awardees are enjoined to keep up the good work they have started they should not relent on the standard. After certification is surveillance inspection four quarters to every company to make sure what they produce remains within the required standards, once they fail we withdraw the certificates from them.”

On his part, the Managing Director of Hara Foam and Chemicals Limited Gombe, Chidi Ugwu, expressed optimism to maintain standards saying “Just like any other company we are happy that we passed through the process and we finally got it. The certification is like a crown to crown all our efforts. It has to continue, the standard we maintained to get this certification we will need to sustain it and we are looking forward to higher certifications from the SON.”

On the certification procedure, he said, “It has really helped. It has boosted us to bring us up to standard to compete with other international products. Before now, Local products fell short of standards but international products kept hitting us in the market but with the help of this we have been helped to grow our product and become standard to compete globally.”

Ugwu while lamenting the challenge of sourcing raw materials added, “The raw materials are still a problem, especially in Nigeria. We are asking and hoping that government will assist us especially when you know that the economy is overwhelming now, so getting raw materials is a big issue.

With the current administration fighting on maintaining dollar value it has been good all the way.”

He vowed to maintain standards while remaining affordable “They should brace up to see more of us in the market. We are standardised now, we will push our products knowing full well it has a Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme it means it can go anywhere without challenges.

“You know affordability has nothing to do with standardisation, we will try to balance the two so that as long as we have the standard we also make it affordable for our people,” he added.

On his part, Ugochukwu Eze, founder of Ugo Chemicals and allied products limited called for more government patronage, assuring to uphold standards, “In terms of quality, our product is no longer a hidden product. The certificate and certification have brought us to the market, we look for more patronage.”