Author: Sodiq Mojibola

The 2025 policy meeting on admissions into tertiary institutions has announced new cut-off marks for admissions into tertiary institutions across Nigeria for the 2025/2026 academic session. At the meeting hosted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), stakeholders agreed that the cut-off mark for universities will be 150, up from 140 last year. For polytechnics, monotechnics, colleges of education, agriculture colleges, and innovation enterprise institutions (IEIs), the cut-off was set at 100, while colleges of nursing will have a cut-off mark of 140. These decisions were proposed by vice-chancellors, rectors, and provosts present at the meeting and approved by…

In response to President Bola Tinubu’s pledge to deploy Nigerian health workers to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), Nigerian doctors have warned that the nation does not have enough health workers to send to Saint Lucia. On Wednesday, Mr Tinubu signed an agreement to deploy skilled manpower, including medical professionals, teachers, and agriculturists, to the Caribbean nation. The deal comes at a time when Nigerian doctors are grappling with systemic neglect, poor salaries, and withheld allowances, among other longstanding challenges. The brain drain in Nigeria’s health sector is a serious problem that has led to the loss of…

The Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) is set to convene leading media voices across the globe for its 17th annual media lecture series to examine how surveillance and safety threats are silencing truth in society. Scheduled for Sunday, 13 July, by 5:00 pm (WAT) via Zoom, the lecture will feature the regional director for Africa at the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Angela Quintal as keynote speaker. Other panelists include the executive director of ARTICLE 19, Quinn McKew; the founder of the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), Fisayo Soyombo, and the Associated Press correspondent, Sonja Smith. With the…

Renowned investor and philanthropist, Tony Elumelu has warned that poverty, no matter where it exists, remains a threat to all of humanity. Speaking at the 32nd anniversary of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), held at the 5,000-capacity Transcorp Event Centre in Abuja, Mr Elumelu, the group chairman of United Bank for Africa (UBA) called on financial institutions to channel more investments into African entrepreneurs, describing this as the most sustainable pathway to eradicate poverty and transform the continent. He noted that with targeted capital deployment, strategic institutional collaborations, and youth empowerment, Africa’s development narrative can be completely redefined. Addressing an audience…

The Nigerian government launched a new Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) initiative on 30 May, aimed at addressing the country’s rising youth unemployment and underemployment rates. Speaking at the monthly dialogue organised by the Education Writers’ Association of Nigeria (EWAN), the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Idris Bugaje, a professor, provided an in-depth explanation of the initiative and responded to questions from participants. Excerpt. What is new about Nigeria’s new TVET initiative? Bugaje: It’s good to interrogate government policies to ensure sustainability. Anytime you hear renewed hope, my understanding is that hopes were…

The last may not have been heard of the integrity crisis that rocked the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) over the conduct of this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), as the examination body has once again announced a new date for mop-up tests. JAMB, in a statement on Sunday afternoon by its Public Affairs Advisor, Fabian Benjamin, listed two categories of candidates who would be eligible for the examination. According to Mr Benjamin, the examination, which is scheduled to hold on Saturday, 28 June, will have a total of 96,838 candidates. He said: “This examination will accommodate the…

A Nigerian academic publishing initiative, Research Africa, has announced the successful indexing of its first digitised academic journal on Google Scholar, marking a significant step toward global visibility. The milestone was disclosed in a statement issued and signed by the organisation’s founder, Olasunkanmi Arowolo. According to the statement, the indexed content, titled ‘Media and Communication Review’, was originally published in 2021 by Lagos State University (LASU) and later digitised by Research Africa in 2023. The journal was authored by LASU scholars, including Rotimi Olatunji, a professor of Public Relations; Tunde Akanni, a professor and expert in Development Communication; Thanny Nooem, a…

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has responded to a recent outcry by a concerned mother who pleaded for the release of her son’s withheld West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) certificate, stating that the delay was causing him to slip into depression. The woman, Temitope Aladegoroye, a broadcaster and lifestyle coach, told Vanguard Newspaper that her son, whom she described as gifted and highly skilled is experiencing a setback in his educational journey due to the withholding of his WASSCE result by WAEC. She explained that her son, with exam number – 5251101693, sat for the November/December 2024…

As millions of Nigerians journey to their hometowns and villages for the Eid-el-Kabir celebrations, alarming data from DevStats, a DevReporting project that focuses on collecting, analysing, and disseminating data on key developmental issues in Nigeria and Africa by extension, signals a warning for travellers.  According to data gathered from different media reports, at least 365 people died in road accidents across Nigeria between January and March 2025. The deaths were recorded from 82 road crashes across 22 states reported in the media in the first quarter of 2025. Findings by this newspaper also revealed that no fewer than 1,028 persons…

A Nigerian private institution, Babcock University, has dismissed Oladipupo Siwajuola, a student who allegedly went missing, after investigations revealed that he had secretly left the campus disguised as an outpatient, and was involved in drug peddling, and fetish practices among others. The university described his actions as a gross violation of its rules and moral code. Master Siwajuola, a one academic year student of the Joint University Preliminary Examination Board (JUPEB), left the university premises on 28 April without authorisation and without the knowledge of any staff member or fellow student. His sudden disappearance sparked panic, prompting his mother to…