JAMB Set To Address Biometric Verification Challenges
The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) says it is set to address biometric verification challenges to ensure a smooth 2014/2015 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Dr Yusuf Lawal, the Director, Test Administration Department, JAMB made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
Lawal said that the ongoing teachers training on biometric verification was crucial to solving the problems that confronted JAMB in 2013/2014 UTME examination.
“We have come a long way in the area of biometric verification but you see each year, we still face one challenge or the other.
“In 2013, we had some hiccups and we did an analysis and discovered that it was the inadequacy of training of some these people that we gave the responsibility of verification to that caused such hiccups.
“Do not forget that the people that we gave this verification to handle are ad hoc staff; they are not staff of the board.
“They are ad hoc staff engaged for the exercise and they need to be trained because that is not their primary duty.
“Therefore, JAMB will be training the ad hoc staff across the country,’’ he said.
Lawal said that the training would be for the teachers that would conduct verification exercises for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) for 2014/2015 in April and May.
He said that the verification exercises would be conducted in 400 centres across the nation.
“The training for the teachers is to enable them get tenancy of the exercise.
“We believe that after the training of these officers, the schools will not go back and change the officers.
“But we have also tried as much as possible to ensure to put in place staff that will go round the centres in case of any challenges,’’ he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the ad hoc staff members are being trained alongside the sensitisation and advocacy campaign programme for various schools across the county. (NAN)
