The Federal Government has issued a strict directive mandating that only secondary schools with certified teachers will be eligible to serve as examination centres from 2027.
The directive was contained in a memo released on Thursday by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, to the Registrar and Chief Executive of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).
According to the minister, the policy is part of government efforts to strengthen professionalism and restore standards in the teaching profession.
“Accordingly, effective from March 2027 for WASSCE, May 2027 for NABTEB, June 2027 for NECO and June 2027 for SAISSCE, any school whose teachers are not duly registered and licensed with the TRCN shall be disqualified from serving as an examination centre,” Alausa stated.
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He further explained that accreditation of both public and private schools for the conduct of major national examinations—including WASSCE, NECO, NABTEB and the National Business and Innovation Skills Examinations (NBIAS)—would now be tied strictly to TRCN certification of teachers.
To ensure smooth implementation, Alausa directed state governments to begin immediate preparations, with schools expected to achieve a minimum compliance rate of 75 per cent by 2026 and full compliance by 2027.
In addition, the minister announced a pathway for teachers without education degrees but with at least one year of classroom experience. Such teachers, he said, must enrol at the National Teachers Institute (NTI) for an abridged professional certification programme lasting between three and six months, after which they would qualify for TRCN registration and licensing.
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He urged affected teachers and school administrators to prioritise the directive, warning that failure to comply could lead to disruptions in accreditation for national examinations.
The latest directive builds on Alausa’s earlier stance in July when he insisted that unqualified teachers must be phased out of Nigerian classrooms.
Speaking at the inauguration of the 5th Governing Council of TRCN, he maintained that “unqualified teachers need to be sacked to rescue Nigeria’s teaching profession from mediocrity and restore its lost dignity.”
