The Registrar, Joint Admission and matriculation board, JAMB, Prof Is-haq Oloyede says with the introduction of the Interactive e-Brochure and e-Syllabus System (IBASS), tertiary institutions no longer have to come to the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board for program accreditation or admission processes.

The JAMB chief explained that in the past, institutions had to travel down to its office to brief it on the status of its programs and accreditation status.

“Communication between NUC, NBTE, NCCE on one hand and the institution on the other hand and in some cases with JAMB have been very chaotic and unnecessarily waste because the institution will have to come all the way from Maybe Port Harcourt or Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria to say this programme has been accredited or introduced for us,” Prof Oloyede said during a training for administrative staff of tertiary institutions.

Prof Oloyede added: “I will write to NUC or NBTE or NCCE to verify whether it has been done but with this style we now believe we can do things in a more efficient manner and that is why we are using IBASS as a communication tool.

“Immediately a programme is amended or approved by NUC, NBTE or NCCE, it is immediately transmitted to the institution and once it is transmitted to that institution, it is only that institution that will see it. And JAMB will immediately see it. NBTE will not see the NCCE work nor will NCCE see what is going on in NBTE. It is individualised to the issues of the communicators.”

The training on the use of IBASS took place in the six geo-political zones simultaneously and had Vice Chancellors, Provosts, Rectors and other administrative staff of tertiary institutions in attendance.

On November 14, 2022, the board announced the full automation of its administration and other communication processes to all its stakeholders as a means of eliminating bureaucracy.

The Board said it took the decision after reviewing bottlenecks associated with communicating or interfacing with various tertiary institutions regarding admission processes.

The new IBASS policy is expected to commence next.

According to Oloyede, from January, 2023, JAMB would refrain from receiving any physical letter from any institution or agency except through its Interactive e-Brochure and e-Syllabus System (IBASS).

While speaking at the North Central training on Monday in Abuja, the JAMB chief commended the desk officers of the National Universities Commission, National Board for Technical Education, and the National Commission for Colleges of Education for their roles in the implementation of the IBASS policy.

The JAMB registrar added that the goal of the new policy is to make things easier and faster for tertiary institutions.

The Provost, College of Education, Zuba, Dr Sule Mundi commended the JAMB registrar for the “good work and for your continued innovations in our test system, and your initiatives in the growth and development of education in general in our nation.”

He added: “You are really a reformer in JAMB, as you put every system in place to reduce to the barest minimum hardened corruption and ineptitude in the examination body.”

He said he was hopeful that the training would ensure seamless communication between JAMB, institutions and their regulatory agencies in addition to providing candidates with the various admission requirements needed from them from their prospective tertiary institutions.

The training on IBASS also took place in ABU, Zaria for the North West; Federal Polytechnic Bauchi for the North East as well as the University of Ibadan for the South West.

Others are University of Port Harcourt for the South South and UNN for South East.