By FRANKLIN ALLI
Industrialists in the country are urging the Federal Government to adequately fund the operations of Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to enable the agency discharge its effectively responsibilities.

According to them, there’s no way SON can effectively enforce its policy of zero tolerance for substandard products without sufficient fund at its disposal, bearing in mind the paltry annual allocation from the government to the organisation.

They noted that SON DG, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, has been doing a good job since he started the enforcement of the zero tolerance policy, but added that he could achieve more if the Agency is well funded.

“The federal government needs to equip and fund SON to enable it continue to do what they are doing. Their output is important in the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan administration”, said Chief Executive Officer of Innoson Group Limited, Mr. Innocent Chukwuma.

Corroborating this, Mr. Chike Obidigbo, Enugu and Anambra chapter chairman of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), said: “It is high time the federal government fully supported the SON to tackle sub standard products and those who are behind it in Nigeria.

“The incidence is killing morale; it is killing initiative and intellectualism. It is also killing entrepreneurship. Now that the SON has shown commitment to work, the Federal government should give it all the necessary support to make this a reality. It would help a lot of SMEs and save hundreds of thousands of jobs,” he said.

Mr. Ralph Opara, another industrialist based in Enugu, asserted that the way out of the problem is to make available a dedicated fund for SON to train personnel and mentor SMEs on standards in their manufacturing processes. He cited India as a country where SMEs could be found at every backyard, saying Nigeria could make similar advancements through adoption of right policies.

“As far as I am concerned, access to quality and standards will enable Nigeria to become more innovative, meet our basic needs and grow its SME sector. It is shocking that Nigeria at this stage still relies on imported products in all facets of its life. Unfortunately, much of such imported products are sub-standard. This is worrisome.

Mr. Frank Abhulimen, a Benin-based agro-allied industrialist who produces insecticide, said Nigerian SME operators truly need support not necessarily in direct funds injection but from SON to enable them produce to standards. He said just like other local manufacturers they do not have access to facilities to analyse the chemical content of their products.

Abhulimen further stated that the federal government could help them by equipping the SON to make such analysis available so that they would be able to compete with products which have been invading the country from China. “It is the duty of SON to do such chemical analysis, and then certify products that meet the standards.

This is what some of us want to see done. We have done our best to introduce products, we need to be supported to make it safe and useful to the Nigerian environment”, he said.