By Gom Mirian
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has pledged its support to ensure Nigerian students evacuated from war-torn Sudan are integrated into Nigerian universities.
The Registrar, JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, who made the promise in Abuja, Tuesday while playing host to the chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said the board will provide the needed infrastructure, the necessary enablement to accommodate the students into the nation’s educational system.
Oloyede advised the students not to tread the path of those who returned to the country over a year ago as a result of Ukraine’s war but refused to comply with the stipulated procedures that would have ensured continuing their academic programmes seamlessly in Nigerian universities.
He said: “There are procedures for transfer of students, and nobody should believe that a Nigerian university will award a certificate with less than two years stay and residency in the university, and the procedure is done legitimately and properly with the cooperation of the National Universities Commission (NUC), and the individual institution.
“The guideline from JAMB has already been handed over to the chairperson of the Commission. If you are doing a five-year programme, you will go to year four, because you are going to spend year 4 and year 5.
” For instance, if you are studying Medicine and you are in your 600 level, and if the Medical and Dental Council assesses what you have done; practical is okay, they will just move you to year 5, 500 level. You will do 500 level and 600 level, and you will have the certificate of the institution in Nigeria.”
The Chairman, NIDCOM, Dabiri-Erewa, said 1,730 Nigerians have been evacuated from Sudan as of Tuesday, adding that the majority of them are students eager to continue their education in Nigeria while waiting for the war to be over.
She said: “The key thing is that there are processes to follow but they are not difficult processes and that is what we learnt from JAMB.
” The institutions are already saying they want to give support, they want to admit them, but the key thing is to follow the process as stipulated by JAMB and the information is on our website so that we don’t make mistakes in getting these things done.
” Most of them are hoping that the war will be over, and they will go back, but what if it is not? What is the stopgap? That is why we are doing this with JAMB.”
Also, one of the parents of the affected students, Asmau Yerima, commended NIDCOM and JAMB for ensuring that the students will not be abandoned at home doing nothing.
” Our children are ready to go back to school, we don’t want to keep them at home. We don’t want them to be traumatised. Thanks to JAMB, they have been kind of cooperating and they gave us all the answers that we needed, and we are happy our children will be going back to school as soon as possible.” she said.
