The Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND has announced plans to allocate funds in the upcoming national budget to establish Information and Communication Technology (ICT) centres across all 774 local government areas in Nigeria.
These centres are intended to support candidates participating in computer-based exams such as the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
During a visit to monitor the ongoing UTME in Abuja, Senator Mohammed Dandutse (APC – Katsina South), Chairman of the Committee, expressed concern over the lack of examination centres in several local government areas. He emphasized that if the federal government encourages students to pursue education within the country, the examination process must be accessible to all.
“In order to ease the process for admission seekers through UTME, we must ensure the presence of ICT centres in each of the 774 local government councils nationwide,” Dandutse stated. “In my senatorial district of Katsina South, only two out of eleven LGAs have such centres. Given the computer-based nature of the exams, this is insufficient. Therefore, we will work with the House of Representatives to include budgetary provisions for these centres in the 2026 fiscal year.”
Earlier, JAMB’s spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, informed the committee that the board currently operates approximately 880 ICT centres across the country. However, these do not extend to every local government area.
“We welcome the committee’s support in expanding ICT centres to underserved LGAs,” Benjamin said. He also reassured the committee that the technical systems in place have been designed to function reliably and will not negatively impact candidates’ performance.
The oversight visit included Senators Jibrin Isah (Kogi East) and Diket Plang (Plateau Central), who expressed satisfaction with JAMB’s preparations and the smooth conduct of the examination.
