By Eteteonline
For the 2026 UTME cycle, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), the Nigerian examination body that administers the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), has revoked the unique registration privileges and exemptions formerly given to applicants with albinism.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) had special accommodations and a modified registration procedure in place for candidates with albinism prior to the announcement of the cancelation for the 2026 UTME. These were meant to be appropriate accommodations for applicants with albinism-related health and vision issues.
Albino candidates were offered modified or simplified processes during the UTME registration process that addressed their handicap needs, for example, alterations in screening or verification steps to cater for vision issues instead of conventional procedures.
In order to receive the benefit, many people were lying about having albinism. More than 7,000 candidates were reported to have claimed to be albino in the last cycle, which sparked suspicions of misuse.
In some cases, people employed artificial intelligence and other manipulations to make it seem as though they were eligible for the concession when they weren’t.
Due to this widespread exploitation and its potential to jeopardize fairness and the integrity of the UTME registration and exam process, JAMB decided to eliminate the special concession totally and make all applicants register under the usual processes like everyone else.
This was one of the decisions made when the Board’s management, under the direction of Registrar Prof. Isaq Oloyede, met with education commissioners from the 36 federation states as well as the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
“We have stopped some concessions we gave albino candidates. This is because some are using Artificial Intelligence, AI, to manipulate the registration process to look like they are albinos because of the consideration we gave them. Last year alone, over 7,000 claimed to be albinos. We have stopped special registration procedures for albinos,’’ Oloyede said.
Official justifications state that the concession was canceled because some people were abusing it. According to concerns, some individuals were abusing the opportunity to enable misconduct in exams or other anomalies.
According to the Board, this move was required to maintain the fairness of the examination process and safeguard the integrity of the UTME.
Albino candidates will no longer enjoy the unique registration concessions they received prior for the 2026 UTME.
They can register for the UTME exactly like other candidates, but without the previous privileges. The action taken by JAMB is a component of a larger campaign to combat cheating and undue advantages in the national entrance exam.
Prof. Oloyede also addressed the complaints from admitted applicants in some private institutions about religious instructions and norms. Oloyede asked the schools to announce from the outset their status.
According to him, “Faith-based institutions should declare from the onset what they are, so that whoever applies there will know what he is going to meet there, but some don’t do that. They will pretend to be secular in nature but when students are now admitted, trouble will begin regarding religious instructions and injunctions.
‘’If you are a faith-based institution, say so. The law allows you to set up faith-based schools,” he said.
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