Nigeria Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in nigeria, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Trade Standards
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Overview

Nigeria operates a top-down, government-driven standards system. The two primary government agencies that regulate product standards are the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON), the apex standardization body, and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), which oversees the production, trade, and sale of food, drugs, cosmetics, chemicals, detergents, medical devices, and packaged water. Standards set by SON and NAFDAC are mandatory and must be met before any product can be registered or certified.

Standardization programs at SON are managed by the Directorate of Standards with the support of technical groups. At the national level, the directorate coordinates the activities of experts and other interested parties known as National Technical Committees to develop the Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS). At the international level, the directorate participates in technical committees of ISO, IEC, AFSEC, CODEX, as well as in the harmonization of standards within ECOWAS and Africa.

Standards

Nigeria accepts standards developed by other organizations, including U.S. bodies, and does not favor those of its trading partners. SON primarily adopts ISO, American, European, African, and ECOWAS standards. The organization has a relationship with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and adopted 10 of the American Petroleum Institute’s (API) standards for the country’s oil and gas industry in 2019. Nigeria does not have a standards treaty with the United States. Therefore, products made in the U.S. or made to U.S. standards must still undergo SON’s conformity assessment or NAFDAC’s product registration/certification process.

NAFDAC is empowered to regulate and control the importation, exportation, manufacture, advertisement, distribution, sale, and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, bottled water, and chemicals (regulated products). This includes conducting tests to ensure compliance with standards specifications predetermined by the NAFDAC Council. NAFDAC is also empowered to inspect imported regulated products and production sites, as well as issue certifications for regulated products destined for export.

SON’s two major schemes for determining conformity to standards are:

  • Mandatory Conformity Assessment Program (MANCAP): Ensures that all locally manufactured products conform to the relevant Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS) prior to sale or export.
  • SON Conformity Assessment Program (SONCAP): Checks goods pre-shipment to ensure that imports into Nigeria conform to the applicable NIS or approved equivalents.

NAFDAC’s Laboratory Service Directorate analyzes quality and compliance for all regulatory products, including imports and exports. It monitors products in the market post-registration to ensure standards are maintained, investigates public quality complaints, and serves as a reference laboratory for other government agencies such as the NCS and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

Product Certification

SON’s product certification is implemented through the following programs:

  • Voluntary Product Certification Scheme (NIS Mark of Quality): Designed to reward products that consistently comply with the requirements.
  • Product-Type Certification for Exports: Products in a specific consignment are tested for conformance with applicable standards.

NAFDAC’s Registration and Regulatory Affairs Directorate certifies products following testing by the Laboratory Service Directorate and other conformity assessment exercises. It also investigates public complaints, conducts post-registration surveillance, and coordinates foreign Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) in Nigeria.

Testing, Inspection & Certification

SON focuses on third-party assessments of products and processes. SON’s expertise includes chemical, inorganic, and textile testing, with ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation for its chemistry laboratory. Testing of international products is typically outsourced to international testing laboratories.

NAFDAC employs accredited consultants with expertise in foods and drugs regulation in Nigeria and globally. These consultants assist firms in meeting regulatory requirements for local production, sale, and export. A full list of consultants is available on the NAFDAC website.

Publication of Technical Regulations

SON standards are outlined in the Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS), which provides rules, guidelines, or characteristics for products and services aimed at achieving an optimum degree of order. The NIS is reviewed by various technical groups led by SON’s Director of Standards Department and approved by SON’s Standard Council.

Technical Groups:

  • Electrical/Electronic
  • Food/Codex
  • Chemical Technology
  • Civil/Building
  • Service Standards
  • Mechanical/Metrology
  • Textile/Leather
  • International Standards

The ePing SPS&TBT platform (https://epingalert.org/) provides access to notifications made by WTO Members under the Agreements on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). The platform remains free of charge and allows stakeholders to browse notifications on new and updated product regulations, food safety, and health standards. Notify U.S., operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to distribute WTO TBT Agreement notifications, was discontinued in 2023. U.S. stakeholders should now send comments directly to the USA WTO TBT Inquiry Point. Guidance for submissions can be found here. 

NAFDAC maintains a compendium of regulations and guidelines on its website, covering cosmetics, foods, drugs, chemicals, herbal products, and infant formula. Stakeholders are advised to verify regulatory changes directly with SON or NAFDAC, as the documentation may not always reflect recent updates.

Contact Information:

SON’s Corporate Headquarters
52, Lome Crescent,
Wuse Zone 7, Abuja
Nigeria.
E-mail: info@son.gov.ng, customerfeedback.collaboration@son.gov.ng
Phone: +234(0)8002255766, +234(0)7056990099
Customer Feed Back Desk: +23470322800925, +2348159570003
Website: https://son.gov.ng/

NAFDAC Corporate Headquarters
Plot 2032, Olusegun Obasanjo Way
Wuse Zone 7, Abuja
E-mail:  nafdac@nafdac.gov.ng
Phone: 09-6718008, 09-5240996
Website: https://www.nafdac.gov.ng/

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