DE Candidates Will Now Sit For UTME — JAMB

Direct Entry (DE) applicants seeking admission to Nigerian universities must now take the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) along with other applicants, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) said on Thursday.

According to JAMB, the goal of the new policy is to make sure that DE candidates can adequately justify their A-level credentials.
 
This information was revealed in a statement by the board's Head of Public Affairs and Protocol, Dr Fabian Benjamin, provided to journalists in Abuja following the management committee meeting.

He claimed that the purpose of the committee meeting was to assess the recent crisis seen in the conduct of the 2023 DE registration.

According to Benjamin, the policy revision also aims to address the flaws that have allowed abuses of the DE admissions procedures.

He stated that the policy is to be positioned within the scope of the board's relentless efforts to promote openness, accountability, and good governance in order to enhance the growth of the country's education sector.

He added that the development demonstrated the board's dedication and resolve to alter the unfavourable perception of A'level admissions to higher education in Nigeria.

”The board has expressed its commitment to press ahead with its efforts to reposition the conduct of public examinations in Nigeria.

”The board stated that the seeming crisis was birthed by the implementation of some of its newly-adopted processes aimed at curbing infractions in the admission value chain given our national peculiarities.

”This policy is to be situated within the ambit of the Board’s relentless efforts aimed at enhancing the growth of the nation’s education sector as it would promote transparency, accountability and good governance,” he said.

The Public Affairs Head also noted that the board had once again sent N2 billion as its interim surplus for the 2023 fiscal year and that additional transfers would be made once the year's operations were finished.

He said that doing so was in keeping the vow made by the board's management team led by its Registrar Prof. Is-haq Oloyede to use technology and discipline to run the board's affairs.

"Since assuming office Prof. Oloyede-led management has remitted over N55 billion to the Federal Government coffers.

“This is far above the less than the  N60 million remitted by the board in the 38 years of its existence prior to the appointment of Prof. Oloyede.

”On assumption of office of the current registrar, he had come up with a policy which holds that whatever would be done, must be on the table.

”This has changed the narratives such that JAMB now posts humongous returns to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

”These returns were bolstered by the board’s expanded internal capacities for its operations achieved through direct execution of its processes and procedures, which instantly resulted in, for instance, a savings of N1.2 billion being paid annually to a service provider.

” It also reflects a downward review of the N1.2 billion being annually paid to another to about N400 million with the same old service provider.

"This is in addition to the recovery of over N1.2 billion in both cash and estates in choice areas of Abuja in 2016,” he said.

Benjamin further said that the actions had made sure that the board, which had contributed roughly N55 million to the national treasury throughout the course of its 40-year existence, had rendered N7.8 billion in Oloyede's first year in office.

He said that it has also made a direct contribution to the national treasury of approximately N27 billion.

”The remitted amount is without prejudice to the 30 per cent reduction in its application fee (N10.8 billion in four years since the reduction).

”Capital Fund (N11 billion including N6 billion, which is yet to be committed), Annual Awards/Grants to tertiary institutions for Capital Projects (N1 billion) and Special Staff Welfare Scheme (N2 billion).

"This would aggregate the cumulative surplus to about N54 billion over the last six years,” he added.