JAMB Records An Increase In 2022 UTME Candidates Registration

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said it has registered 236, 206 candidates within the first eight days of the commencement of the registration for the 2022 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and the Direct Entry (DE) programme.

According to the examination body, the record is a huge improvement when compared to its experience in 2021 when it said only 102,221 candidates were successfully registered within the same period.

In its Monday bulletin, The Board’s head of media and public relations, Dr Fabian Benjamin, noted that the new development is an indication that its partnership with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) on the mandatory use of the National Identity Numbers (NIN) by prospective candidates is yielding the desired results.

JAMB said unlike in 2019 when it had to abruptly suspend the mandatory use of NIN by candidates due to complaints, the reintroduction of the policy in 2020, has helped to significantly curb examination malpractices.

The statistics provided by JAMB in its bulletin indicated that on the first day of the registration in 2021, only 17 candidates successfully procured the required personal identification number (PIN) but none successfully registered.

However, on the first day of registration in 2022, a total of 13,000 prospective candidates had already procured PINs while 5,846 successfully registered.

Meanwhile, JAMB said within the first eight days of registration commencement in 2021, a total of 117,314 successfully procured their PINs while 102,221 were successfully registered But in the ongoing processes, a total of 236,206 candidates have been successfully registered.

Meanwhile, the examination body said it has approved the constitution of a management committee to monitor the ongoing registration exercise nationwide.

It added that apart from the UTME and DE registration, the accredited computer-based test centres have also been approved to register candidates for the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), part-time, sandwich and distance learning programmes, and that proper monitoring would be required to address likely issues of malpractices.

The examination added ”To ensure that the candidates and the public get quality services and are not extorted, the Board would be monitoring the 2 0 2 2 UTME /DE registration exercise, as well as assess how the centres are shouldering the added responsibility.

“The exercise is part of the Board’s resolve to ensure that its agents play according to the rules as anyone found wanting would be delisted. Furthermore, the centres were also charged to refrain from charging above the regulated fees.”