BRIEF ON NATIONAL REGISTER FOR CONFORMITY ASSESMENT PRACTITIONERS – NRCAP
Standards Organisation of Nigeria demonstrates unwavering resolve to sanitise the conformity Assessment practice in Nigeria in line with the provisions of the law (Part III, section 5 of the SON ACT No. 14 of 2015 “to establish Registration and Regulation for National Standards, Standard Marks, Certification Systems and Licenses” via the operation of the NRCAP scheme in order to establish a directory of verified and registered Conformity Assessment Practitioners in Nigeria for all Laboratories, Management system Auditors, Trainers, Inspectors, Consultants, Inspection and Certification bodies).
According to, ISO/IEC 17000:2004, Conformity assessment—Vocabulary and general principles, defines conformity assessment as “demonstration that specified requirements relating to a product, process, system, person or body are fulfilled. Conformity assessment services are usually performed by organizations specializing in one or other activities, of which the main ones are described below:
Testing – A product is tested against a specific set of criteria, such as performance or safety. Testing is the most common form of conformity assessment. Testing also provides the basis for other types of conformity assessment such as inspection and product certification.
Inspection – Inspection bodies play an essential role in cross-border trade. They act on behalf of governments and business partners (importers and exporters) by inspecting imported goods and materials. They are responsible for examining a huge range of products, materials, installations, plants, processes, work procedures and services, in the private as well as the public sector, and report on such parameters as quality, fitness for use and continuing safety in operation. The overall aim is to reduce risk to the buyer, owner, user or consumer of the item being inspected. Government and business often use their services to inspect imported goods and materials.
Certification – Certification is when a certification body gives written assurance that a product, service, process, personnel, organization or management system conforms to specific requirements. The most well-known examples are the certification of quality management systems and environmental management systems as conforming, respectively, to the ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards. Newer management standards that also allow for certification address food safety (ISO 22000), energy management (ISO 50001) occupational safety and health while at work (1SO 45001) and information security (ISO/IEC 27001).
The scope of coverage for registration to the NRCAP Scheme include:
- Management system consultants
- Management system Training service Providers
- Laboratory/Calibration Testing Service Providers
- Inspections Bodies
- Certification Bodies
- Personnel Category: Auditors, Inspectors etc.
