Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, has bagged the prestigious Academia in Information Technology Professional (AITP) award.
According to the information in the current edition of the JAMB Bulletin, the award was in recognition of Prof. Oloyede’s superlative performance in office as well as his immense contributions to the development of Information Technology in Nigeria.
Prof. Oloyede was honoured alongside six others: Prof. Adenike O. Osofisan; Prof. Charles O. Uwadia; Prof. David O. Adewunmi; Prof. Adesola G. Aderounmu and Prof. AbdulRasheed Na’Allah.
They were adjudged as having distinguished themselves in the development of ICT in the country. The awards were conferred at the 2020 Virtual International Conference on Information Technology in Education and Development (ITED).
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AITP is an affiliate group with the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) aiming at promoting quality research in education especially in the fields of Computer Science, Information Technology and other relevant fields.
AITP, the umbrella body for all IT scholars in Universities, Polytechnics, Monotechnics, Colleges of Education, Research Institutes and Academia in Parastatals and Ministries, was birthed three years ago.
Justifying the awards in an interaction with the JAMB Bulletin, the AITP President, Prof. Afolayan Obiniyi, said, “The roles our awardees played in the development of Information Technology in Nigeria cannot be overlooked, hence, we are recognising their contributions to this our noble profession.”
The AITP president said Prof. Oloyede during his five-year administration as vice-chancellor, University of Ilorin, was able to turn around the fortunes of the university and its ratings soared among African universities. In the same vein, Prof. Oloyede assumed duty as the registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on 6th August 2016 and in the space of three years, was also able to revamp the fortunes of the four-decade-old examination body.”
Prof. Obiniyi also recalled that the registrar, on assumption of duty back in 2016, had instituted a five-point agenda, which, among other things, emphasised the need to partner with relevant stakeholders to develop a robust technology infrastructure that would ease the operations of the Board and achieve organisational effectiveness and efficiency.
Continuing, he said, “It was on record that it was Prof. Oloyede’s administration that abolished the corruption-ridden scratch card system and introduced e-pin vending. This singular act, coupled with transparent and prudent use of resources led, to the mind-blowing remittance of over N22 billion to the federal coffers in less than three years.
“According to Prof. Obiniyi, other ICT- induced achievements included Candidate-Centred Initiative to ease the registration process through profile creation where candidates just send their names to a USSD Code and they are registered, adding that the innovation has reduced crowds at the various centres during UTME registration exercise.
He said, “Also noteworthy was the introduction of CCTV cameras at CBT centres to monitor happenings during the UTME and this has greatly helped in deterring would-be examination cheats from perpetrating their unwholesome acts. This is a novel initiative that has been applauded globally.”
“The invaluable contributions of technology to the development of the Board’s e-testing had effectively reduced cases of examination malpractice to the barest minimum while improving service delivery.”
The AITP president also cited the introduction of the Integrated Brochure Syllabus System (IBASS) to assist candidates to navigate the ever-increasing number of tertiary institutions in the country. He said this facility has also provided ample opportunities for higher institutions, regulatory bodies and prospective candidates to have seamless interactions with the brochure in terms of courses/programmes, entry requirements, waivers and quota, etc.”
Prof Obiniyi was also impressed with the automation of the admission process into tertiary institutions through the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) and other numerous innovations.
He observed that CAPS is devoid of human interference and, as such, guarantees fairness, credibility and thoroughness in the admissions process. In terms of test deployment, he commended the Board’s migration from VSAT to VPN of Telcos with the corresponding reduction in the cost of test transmission.
The AITP president also mentioned the strict adherence to the extant guidelines on financial disclosure through the weekly publication of its financial dealings for public scrutiny.