Nigeria Sets Benchmark With Innovative National Quality Policy

Nigeria is setting a new standard in quality governance, earning international recognition for its pioneering National Quality Policy (NQP).

The chief executive of the United Kingdom Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), Graham Russell, described Nigeria’s approach as “novel” and suggested it could serve as a blueprint for other nations seeking to strengthen their quality infrastructure.

Russell made the remarks during the OPSS International Conference 2026, held in London from January 27 to 28, under the theme: “Regulation for Growth – Product Regulation in a Digital Age.” He singled out Nigeria’s inter-ministerial governance structure, domiciled in the Presidency, which coordinates the implementation of the NQP, calling it an “interesting case study” for countries looking to advance their quality infrastructure pillars.

The praise followed a presentation by Osita Aboloma, Chairman of the National Quality Council (NQC), on “Innovation and Nigeria’s National Quality Policy” during the session on “Innovation, Regulatory Delivery and Data Handling.” Aboloma highlighted that Nigeria is one of the few countries with a distinct governance framework for the NQP, designed to encourage private sector participation in product inspection and conformity assessment—roles previously dominated by government institutions.

In partnership with the British Standards Institution under the Standards Partnership Programme, Nigeria has embarked on a series of targeted interventions to strengthen quality infrastructure. These include raising awareness of the policy’s role in improving efficiency across government and key private sector stakeholders, implementing a sector-specific NQP Strategy Matrix focusing on cocoa, cashew, leather and its derivatives, and tea as pilot projects, and rolling out a communications strategy to deepen engagement with the private sector.

“These initiatives have created opportunities for meaningful collaboration with both government regulators and organized private sector groups, including small and medium-sized enterprises,” Aboloma said.

Among the NQP’s landmark achievements is the Nigerian National Accreditation System (NiNAS) securing recognition under the African Accreditation Cooperation (AFRAC) and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC), as well as the multilateral arrangement of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF).
According to Aboloma, this milestone provides Nigeria with a local equivalent of an international trade instrument for trust and integrity in accreditation, opening doors for foreign exchange savings and job creation across the quality infrastructure value chain.

Looking ahead, the NQC is developing a National Technical Regulatory Framework (NATReF), modeled on the African Technical Regulatory Framework (ACTReF). “When fully operational, NATReF will significantly enhance Nigeria’s technical regulatory landscape and improve data handling through digital solutions,” Aboloma said, noting that these measures position Nigeria to take a leading role in implementing mutual recognition agreements under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), using conformity assessment to promote equivalence across the continent.