SON, COMSEC train SMEs on quality management system

TO ensure competitiveness, the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Commonwealth Secretariat (COMSEC) have started a special training for owners of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria for attainment of quality management system.The training was focused on establishing standards for SMEs' competitiveness.Speaking at the programme, Director-General of SON, Joseph Odumodu, noted that presently, 'we no longer practice either monopoly nor competitive market, but the free system type of market.'Odumodu, represented by the Director, Technical Services of the organisation, Damian Agbanelo, disclosed that the essence of the training workshop was to acquaint SMEs on how to set up businesses and enter into competitive advantage and not comparative, so as to stay afloat in business.The SON boss, who stated that the training scheduled for Abuja, Lagos and Aba, which was meant to start with the commercial hub centres across the country, was not the usual group day-to-day training, but 'quality technical training where there will be assessment at the end of the day to select those who will serve as model and benefit from the International Standard Organisation (ISO) certification after meeting the requirements.Odumodu advised the SMEs to focus on the fact that what they produce must be fit for use as the economy will only grow when they (SMEs) begin to ensure quality in their products.According to him, 'if we begin to transform SMEs to higher grade, then we can beat our chest and say that our economy is growing.'He said SON was training the SMEs to encourage them as well as for them to know what is there for them to excel.In his remark, the National President of National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME), Garba Ibrahim Gusau lauded SON for the initiative saying the training will go a long way in assisting SMEs.He noted that if SMEs can be able to get ISO 9001: 2000 certification, it would help make the quality of their products acceptable anywhere in the world.The ISO 9001:2000 'certification' refers to the issuing of written assurance (the certificate) by an independent external body that it has audited a management system and verified that it conforms to the requirements specified in the standard.The NASME president, who lamented that while there are more than 11million SMEs in Nigeria, SON is going to select only 32 of them urged the organisation (SON) to 'subsidise the cost of ISO 9001:2000 certification for members as it is very exhorbitant and can only be acquired by the multi-nationals.The three-day training workshop, which commenced yesterday in Abuja has as its theme: 'Implementing a quality management system for enhanced SMEs competitiveness.
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