UTME: 4,216 candidates with disabilities enrolled into Nigerian universities in 10 years – Okebukola

No fewer than 4,216 candidates with disabilities have secured admission into universities, polytechnics and colleges of education across Nigeria in the last 10 years through the intervention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) Equal Opportunity Group (JEOG).

Chairman of JEOG and former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Emeritus Professor Peter Okebukola, disclosed this on Wednesday during the 2026 JAMB National Stakeholder Engagement on Inclusivity and Higher Education held at the NUC headquarters in Abuja.

The JAMB Equal Opportunity Group is an initiative established by the outgoing JAMB Registrar, Professor Is-haq Oloyede, to provide candidates with disabilities equal access to the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and admission into tertiary institutions.

“In the last 10 years, we have had 4,216 candidates with different categories of disabilities participate in the programme. On the average, about 53 per cent of them gain admission into universities, polytechnics and colleges of education every year,” he said.

Okebukola stressed that candidates with disabilities are assessed under the same academic standards as every other UTME candidate.

“We do not lower standards for them. They answer the same questions as every other candidate. I am continually amazed by how excellently they perform. Many of them are exceptionally brilliant,” he said.

He noted that many of the beneficiaries have excelled in competitive disciplines, including law and other professional courses, adding that their performance demonstrates that disability is not a barrier to academic excellence when adequate support is provided.

Speaking on the theme of stakeholder engagement, Okebukola said discussions focused on how artificial intelligence (AI) could be deployed to strengthen inclusive higher education in Nigeria.

“We are reviewing what we have achieved in the last 10 years and looking ahead. One of the major issues that will shape the future of higher education is artificial intelligence, and we are examining how AI can improve the efficiency of inclusivity in higher education,” he said.According to him, the manual was developed after extensive consultations with 468 scholars and underage students already enrolled in Nigerian universities, with emphasis on helping them navigate challenges such as bullying, emotional adjustment and social integration.