By Nkechi Eze
The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has conducted an intensive sensitisation session for corps members at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Orientation Camp, Iyana Ipaja, Lagos State, aimed at promoting awareness on standardisation and quality assurance.
Representing the Director General and Chief Executive of SON, Dr. Ifeanyi Chukwunonso Okeke, at the event was the Head of SON Lagos Region, Mrs. Tessy Ojomo. She conveyed the goodwill message of the Director General and led the engagement with corps members during the session.
Mrs. Ojomo outlined the core mandates of SON, established in 1970 as Nigeria’s apex standardisation body, and emphasised its key functions which include product certification, quality assurance, standards development, metrology and calibration services, as well as enforcement and compliance monitoring.
She also provided detailed insights into key SON programmes such as the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP), which certifies locally manufactured products, and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programme (SONCAP), which ensures pre-shipment verification of imported goods to prevent substandard products from entering the Nigerian market.
Additionally, Mrs. Ojomo educated the corps members on various management systems facilitated by SON, including environmental management, food safety, and occupational health and safety standards.
In her remarks, she urged corps members to adopt an entrepreneurial outlook and incorporate quality standards in any future business endeavours.
“Understanding and applying quality standards is essential not only for consumer protection but also for boosting the credibility and competitiveness of your business,” she stated.
The sensitisation session concluded with a visit to the SON exhibition stand, where corps members engaged in interactive discussions and demonstrations on how standardisation supports national development and safeguards public welfare.
