2023 UTME: JAMB remits N2bn to FG

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation (JAMB) has remitted N2billion into the federal government treasury as its interim surplus for this year’s operation following the conclusion of conduct of the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

Spokesperson of JAMB, Dr Fabian Benjamin, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

Benjamin promised that more would be remitted as Board’s operations for the year are completed.

He also announced that as a matter of new policy and innovation, all Direct Entry candidates would henceforth sit the same examination with the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) candidates.

The N2 billion remitted has brought to the total of about N55 billon so far remitted to the federal government account as operating surplus by JAMB since the assumption of office as Registrar of the Board by Prof Is-haq Oloyede.

Benjamin said the remittances were made possible through effective and prudent management of resources by Oloyede-led administration.

“This is in furtherance of the pledge by the Prof. Is-haq Oloyede-led management, on assumption of duty, that it would leverage on technology and discipline to manage the affairs of the Board.

“Since assuming office the Prof. Is-haq 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 the existence of the Board 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),” Benjamin said.

He explained that 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 and a downward review of the N1.2 billion being annually paid to another to about N400 million with the same old service provider.

He said this was in addition to the recovery of over N1.2 billion in both cash and estates in choice areas of Abuja, in 2016.

“It was these steps and many others, which had ensured that a Board, which had remitted cumulatively in its 40 years of existence about N55 million to the national treasury, rendered N7.8 billion in the first year of the assumption of office of Prof. Oloyede and has since contributed over N27 billion directly into the national treasury,” he said.

Benjamin further noted that the remitted amount was without prejudice to the 30 per cent reduction in the Board’s application fee (N10.8 billion in 4 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 (N2billion).

He added this would aggregate the cumulative surplus to about N54 billion over the last six years.

In another development, the Board has expressed its commitment to press ahead with its efforts to reposition the conduct of public examinations in Nigeria.

In a statement issued at the end of its management committee meeting held to appraise the recent crisis witnessed in the conduct of the 2023 Direct Entry registration, 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.

Dr Fabian Benjamin disclosed that another major policy change also to be implemented by the Board to holistically address all loopholes giving rise to abuses in the Direct Entry admission processes is that all DE candidates, which comprise those seeking to be in Year Two in the universities, would henceforth be required to sit the UTME along with other candidates for them to justify the possession of their A’level certificates.

“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.

“It also underscores the Board’s commitment and determination towards changing the negative narrative of A’level admissions into higher institutions in Nigeria,” he said.