SME Exporter’s Challenges: Suggested Solutions II

      

• Inadequate infrastructure to control product quality.
• Reluctance of buyers to import from Nigeria due to Nigeria’s bad reputation of the qualities of Nigerian products in the export market.
• Reluctance of buyer to accept a secured payment terms and method like confirmed LC.
• The incompetency and unprofessional attitude of some inspection agents.

Suggested Solutions- Government should make laws to establish Export Products Quality Control Agency. This agency should form an alliance with reputable and competent inspection agents abroad. In this strategic partnership, the inspection agents will be the technical partner while the Export Products Quality Control Agency will be in charge of monitoring and control of the products to be exported from Nigeria. Its staff should be drawn from the federal produce Agency under the Federal ministry of Agriculture, Nigerian Mining Corporation under the Federal ministry of mines and steel, NAFDAC, SON and any other relevant agencies.

The alliances to be formed should be with relevant Inspection companies, for example, for the inspection of Agricultural commodities, the alliance should be with inspection companies like SGS, the agency should partner with companies like Alex-Stewart for Solid Minerals, however, for semi-processed and finished goods, this body should do the inspection through NAFDAC and SON whom I think are local government agencies that are competent enough to carry out the necessary quality and quantity inspection for both food items and non-food items respectively.

The law establishing the Export Products Quality Control Agency should stipulate the following as its responsibilities among others;

a)    The Export Product Quality Control Agency should inspect all products being exported out of Nigeria and issue a quality and quantity certificate to the exporter.

b)    This agency should establish a well equipped and reliable laboratory in 6 strategic states of the federation. The laboratories should be equipped based on the prevalent export products in the geo-political zones where they are located. This laboratory should be the first point of call for analysis of product samples before its gets to Lagos for final inspection and export.

c)     The quality and quantity certificate to be issued by this agency should be part of the document to be mandated for customs export clearance and shipment booking with the shipping line.

d)    Any company that attempt to export any product without the quality and quantity certificate from the Export Products Quality Control Agency should be sanctioned

e)    The men of the agency must have a task force at the port who will enforce the laws establishing the Export Product Quality Control Agency

f)     The agency should organise a regular quarterly enlightenment workshop for exporters to train them on quality control best practices of different product and also intimate the exporters of any new development in the agency’s activities.

g)    The agency should set a minimum standard for all products to be exported out of Nigeria, train the exporters on how to achieve them and also ensure that this is strictly adhere to through their special task force at the port.

h)    The quality and quantity certificate to be issued by this agency should be part of the document to be mandated for the issuance of the Negotiable Duty Credit Certificate (NDCC) for the Exporter’s Export Expansion Grant from the Federal Government.

i)      This agency should have a warehouse located close to Lagos ports where exporters can bring their product for analysis before export.

j)     The personnel of this agency should also visit exporter’s warehouses to do quality and quantity analysis and certificates based on exporter’s request

k)    The agency should have their branded seals to be used to seal the containers carrying any product that they have inspected. The seal number must be stated on the Bill of lading of every exported consignment.

l)     The activities of the agency should cover all goods exported out of Nigeria via the sea, air and road/land borders.

m)   This agency should also ensure that all exporters (especially the Asians and other foreigners exporting any product from Nigeria) process NXP form through any Commercial Bank in Nigerian. A copy of this NXP should be part of the document to be presented and verified before the agency issue their quality and quantity certificate to the exporter.

n)    The evidence of purchase of commodities via the Nigerian Commodity Exchange should be part of the document to be presented and verified before the agency issue their quality and quantity certificate to the exporter.