| Importers benefit from
products registration – SON chief
By CHARLES NWAOGUJI
Saturday, September
27, 2008
Engr. Blede E. Obayi, Assistant Director and Head, Product
Registration, the Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON),
believes in proper documentation. According to him, this enhances
economical development.
He told Saturday Sun the secret of his success
the challenges and the benefit of product registration scheme,
revenue drive as well as other related matters.
Essence of product Registration
Product registration is the process of fact and mechanism
introduced by the organization to ensure that products that
are coming into the country are properly characterized. We
want to know who is producing such goods, or which country
the products are coming from, and who is importing it into
Nigeria.
We want to know the brand of products that are coming into
country. For instance, if you are the one importing television,
it is not just enough that you are importing it. We want to
know who is importing Akai, Sony, or National, or Panasonic,
fridge, airconditioners.
We want to know exactly those behind these products, so that
if Mr. President asks who brings whatever product into the
country we can give the answer immediately. An integrated
product registration scheme is, no doubt, the tonic required
for a nation to have valid statistical date on the nature
and brands of products entering into it. That is the essence
of this registration.
Challenges
SON is already up to the challenges because we have characterized
all the products that are made and those that are imported
into the country under our various departments. We have the
department of Chemical Technology, Civil Building, Electrical/Electronics,
Mechanical, Food Technology and Textile/Leather. We have expertise
in these fields, real professionals who handle these products,
in terms of analysis, checking surveillance at the boarders
and at the see ports. So we have all it takes to facing the
challenges.
We are up to the task; the only problem is that Nigeria is
a large country; so it is not for us to tell you; we have
all the manpower to handle the whole nation. We have various
borders, and some of these products will come through these
various borders that need manpower to check them. But the
ones that are coming from the right sea, the land and air,
we are there conveying them. We don’t have any problem
but for the borders that are not well policed, you have all
these products points.
Requirement
What we, in the SON requires from the importers, are straight
forward. We need the name of the product, its brand name,
the country of the origin, specification/standard used or
conformed to Batch/Lot number, name of the importer, importer’s
location address and a unique registration.
These are the things the SON needs to approve any product
from the importers before it can be distributed to the consumers
for consumption. For quality records to operate successfully,
there must be product sampling form, laboratory sample movement
form, sample movement form, sample movement registers, laboratory
test results records, failed laboratory results resolution
enforcement form, certificate list form and registration report
summary sheets. I must state here that all these items are
needed for successful quality records to operate. We are expecting
every importer to provide all these for easy recordings for
future references.
Benefits of products registration
The benefits of products registration are numerous for an
importer in Nigeria. Most importers don’t have their
laboratory here to verify the quality of the products as they
come in with. So the first thing SON do for them is to tested
these products, cross-checks that the quality is okay and
meets the required standards, which now assure the importer
that he is introducing into the market the right quality product
that is going in for consumption. If you are in Aba, you register
a trade mark and we register a brand of products. We will
find out whether that marks is yours. When you registered
that brand in Abuja, we now know it is your own; then we will
register the product for you. We can now give you a number,
which is indicated on that product. And other product is enjoying
that mark all over Nigeria so that if there is any person
bringing the same product or brand you had registered, then
you have a right to complain to SON.
We maintain inventory of products requiring standardization.
Adequate and reliable data base of products requiring standardization
is absolutely important for a nation that operates conformity
assessment programmes for its locally manufactured products
and imported products. Product registration facilitates conflict
resolution by the organization. The product registration data
assist greatly in facilitating consumer complaints/conflict
resolution. This information assist in ensuring that organization’s
quality objectives are disseminated and enforced with integrity.
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