SON – Economy bleeding from importation of sub-standard goods in Nigeria

The Director-General of the Standard Organisation of Nigeria, SON, Farouk Salim, has said that the nation’s economy is suffering from high levels of importation of sub-standard goods into the country.

The SON boss said this at a stakeholders’ sensitisation forum held in Lagos with the theme “Standards Save Lives, Grow Economy.”

Salim noted that the country cannot survive if importers continue with the level of sub-standard goods shipped into the country.

He noted that when SON impounds such sub-standard goods, it is the importer that the organisation is helping, stressing that at the end; such imports will not only affect local industries, but the citizenry, and infrastructures.

He pointed out that every time an importer ships in such goods which affects about a 100 people, even when the importer reaches out to 10 persons; the 90 others will still suffer the consequences.

He lamented that in Nigeria, nobody tracks the sellers of such goods or arrests such importers and drags them to court.

He, therefore, urged the stakeholders to engage genuine businessmen to bring quality products into the country, noting that if sub-standard goods continue to come into the country, the local manufacturers and industries would be destroyed.

Also speaking at the event, the Vice President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, ANLCA, Kayode Farint, said that if the country must win the war against the importation of sub-standard goods, there is a need to return SON back to the seaports.

Farinto while delivering a topic: “Juxtaposing Substandard Imports; SON’s Absence At Seaport,” said despite the fact that SON has vacated the ports a few years ago, the increase in the imports of sub-standard goods and the effort of some non-conformists has shown that there is need to reverse the executive decision if the nation must win the war against the importation of sub-standard goods in the country.

Similarly, President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Chief Tochukwu Ezisi, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Rev. Emma Agunbaze, urged SON to engage stakeholders more, saying that stakeholders’ engagement would further ensure proper consideration of interests while commending SON for embracing the ease of doing business in the country.