More than 500 visually impaired candidates will take part in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) at 11 centers throughout Nigeria.
The announcement was made by Professor Emeritus Peter Okebukola, who serves as the chairman of JAMB’s Equal Opportunity Group (JEOG), at a press conference discussing the arrangements being made for the examination intended for visually impaired students and other individuals with specific requirements.
In 2017, when the JEOG was founded through the initiative of JAMB Registrar Professor Oloyede, Professor Okebukola, who took on the role of chairperson at that time, highlighted the importance of this committee’s duty to guarantee an uninterrupted examination experience for students with specific requirements, particularly those who are visually impaired.
A total of 501 visually impaired applicants have enrolled for the 2025 UTME, scheduled for April 28 and 29, 2025, across 11 specified locations throughout the country. These students will take part in exams encompassing 20 different topics, facing identical test materials as fully-sighted peers without compromising the criteria.
Professor Okebukola, who serves as the President of GUNi-Africa, commended Professor Oloyede for his strong advocacy in favor of equitable opportunities for higher education among students with special needs, especially within the continent of Africa. He highlighted that numerous African nations concur that Nigeria has distinguished itself through these endeavors during Oloyede’s tenure, specifically in aiding visually impaired individuals pursuing tertiary studies.
Under this program, 84 visually impaired applicants who meet the minimum requirements for university entry (having achieved at least five O-level credits) will receive reimbursement of their UTME registration fees directly at the test center. Additionally, these candidates will be provided with various supportive services such as complimentary lodging for both them and their companions, free Braille writing tools like slates and styluses, personalized T-shirts, all meals throughout the duration of the exams, and travel subsidies.
“These actions taken by JAMB and Professor Oloyede are unprecedented in Africa,” Okebukola noted.
For the second consecutive year, JAMB will adopt the bimodal system of exam administration. This setup gives examinees the option between two formats: Fully Braille and Fully Read-Aloud. The JEOG has guaranteed that both methods will provide a smooth and accommodating process for all test takers.
Remember that in 2024, approximately 70% of applicants from JEOG, which included visually impaired and albinism-affected individuals, secured placements at universities, polytechnic institutions, and teacher training colleges. These students were accepted into an array of programs like jurisprudence, specialized pedagogy, medical studies, pharmaceutical sciences, information technology, healthcare services, structural engineering, and commercial management.
Here’s how the candidate distribution looks among the 11 centers: Lagos has 107 candidates overseen by Professor Olanrewaju Adigun Fagbohun, who previously served as the Vice-Chancellor at LASU; Kano boasts 91 participants under the coordination of Professor Muhammad Yahuza Bello, another ex-Vice-Chancellor from Bayero University; Abuja accommodates 41 individuals; Ado-Ekiti hosts 32 people led by Professor Rasheed Aderinoye; Bauchi counts 37 entrants guided by Professor Ibrahim Yusuf; Benin City supports 18 students coordinated by Professor Samuel G. Odewumi; Enugu includes 50 scholars mentored by Professor Emeritus Mosto Onuoha; Kebbi manages 14 aspirants supervised by Professor Asabe Kabir; Oyo houses 69 contenders managed by Professor Taoheed Adedoja; Jos encompasses 28 applicants directed by Professor Nasiru Maiturare; finally, Yola takes care of 16 learners placed under the guidance of Professor Muhammad Yakasai.
The institutions providing admission opportunities for JEOG applicants encompass well-known universities and polytechnics like the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan, Ahmadu Bello University, Bayero University, Federal Polytechnic Oko, along with various others.
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