BY OLUSHOLA BELLO, Lagos
The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has promised to partner stakeholders in the health care delivery sector to enhance the quality of equipment, machinery and services being offered in the sector.
The director-general of SON, Mallam Farouk Salim, made the offer recently in a goodwill message to the 45th national convention of the Pharmaceutical Association of Nigerian Students (PANS), held at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State recently.
He stated that the offshore conformity assessment programme for SON regulated imports (SONCAP) provides a window of import permit for raw materials equipment and machinery while urging stakeholders to take optimum advantage of it to improve the quality of products being offered to Nigerians.
He said further that local manufacturing of medical equipment and machinery will gain a lot in accuracy of measurements from the calibration services being offered by the SON promoted National Metrology Institute (NMI) located in Enugu with outreaches across the country.
Salim invited all public and private sector organisations in the country to take advantage of the SON internationally accredited management systems certification services to guarantee improvements in their processes and systems in line with international best practices.
According to him, the internationally accredited laboratory services being offered by SON provides seamless international acceptance for all commodities and products tested at very competitive prices, especially, for members of the organised private sector to promote national self-sufficiency, increased export and foreign exchange earnings.
Salim enjoined members of PANS to fully internalise adherence to standards and quality, embodied in the ethics of the pharmacy profession, adding that, they will have the responsibility of continuously meeting international best practices in the global village.
