Caption From left: Head, Electrical Laboratory, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Engr. lawal Ismaila; Director, Lab Services, SON, Mr David Ikhenebame; Director, Corporate Affairs, SON, Mrs Talatu Ethan; Chairman, Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN), Mr Charles Okonji; Vice Chairman, CICAN, Mrs Rhoda Ogunseye, during the One-Day Standards Organisation of Nigeria/Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN) Training and Workshop, held in Lagos, yesterday.
Partnership with media is indispensable for economic growth and devt-SON DG
Caption
From left: Head, Electrical Laboratory, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Engr. lawal Ismaila; Director, Lab Services, SON, Mr David Ikhenebame; Director, Corporate Affairs, SON, Mrs Talatu Ethan; Chairman, Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN), Mr Charles Okonji; Vice Chairman, CICAN, Mrs Rhoda Ogunseye, during the One-Day Standards Organisation of Nigeria/Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN) Training and Workshop, held in Lagos, yesterday.
Only the non- discerning would underrate the critical role of the Media in enhancing and facilitating national development aspirations.
This was the submission of the Director General of the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON)-Dr Ifeanyi Okeke- today in Lagos at a one-day capacity workshop for Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN).
This understanding , he said , informed the workshop which he said was targeted at empowering participants with the right information about standardization, product quality assurance and regulatory framework all of which he stressed are essential in the quest for a new Nigeria.
Okeke, who was represented by the regulatory agency’s Director, Corporate Affairs –Mrs Talatu Ethan stated inter-alia “As partners in progress, your role in promoting industrial development, trade facilitation and consumer protection cannot be overstated….You are the key translators between the technical language of standardization and the everyday understanding of our citizens”.
He added “We recognize that your platforms: print, broadcast and digital, shape public perception, influence consumer behaviour and impact industrial compliance. Your pen is powerful. It can catalyse change, demystify standards and deepen national conversations around made-in-Nigeria products, quality assurance and competitiveness”.
Consequently, the DG urged the attendees to become advocates of quality and champions of the Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS). He stressed that they have a critical role to play in projecting the Nigeria First policy which prioritizes the patronage of locally made certified products, adding that they are also to enlighten all sector operators and the public on how standardization helps Nigeria to harness the full benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA).
Okeke, who said that standards have become the currency of global relevance, also tasked the participants to sensitize local manufacturers and businesses and indeed Nigerians generally on the importance of compliance with the NIS, just as he urged them to promote the visibility and benefits of SON’s key programmes, like the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) and other product certification schemes.
He listed the various services of the organization which would be showcased at the workshop to include calibrating services, Management systems certification, training and marketing services, among others.
Earlier at the event, the Chairman, CICAN-Mr Charles Okonji-stressed that the prevailing realties of rising inflation and the concomitant alarming increases in the prices of goods and services and their impacts, especially on the real sector of the economy, makes Media empowerment and partnership an imperative if only to enlighten the public on steps by the government at fixing the challenges.
On this note, he described the capacity building workshop is a most welcome and very timely event, even as he canvassed SON’s sustained partnership for mutual benefits. Okonji acknowledged SON’s support over the decades, which he said had been quite helpful, noting that the regulatory agency has also in return enjoyed good reportage by the association. “So SON should keep it up and even do a lot more”, the CICAN Chairman also stated.
