The Federal Government has issued a directive to all secondary schools in Nigeria: ensure all teachers are professionally certified or risk losing accreditation as examination centres for national exams.
This was disclosed in a memo released Thursday by the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, and addressed to the Registrar and Chief Executive of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).
According to the memo, starting from 2027, both public and private secondary schools must ensure their teachers are registered and licensed by TRCN to retain their status as centres for major public examinations, including WASSCE, NECO, NABTEB, and the National Business and Industrial Skills Examination (NBIAS).
“Effective from March 2027 for WASSCE, May 2027 for NABTEB, and June 2027 for NECO and SAISSCE, any school whose teachers are not duly registered and licensed with TRCN shall be disqualified from serving as an examination centre,” the minister stated.
The policy is part of the government’s broader push to professionalize the teaching profession and ensure higher standards in Nigeria’s education sector.
Dr. Alausa also called on state governments to take the directive seriously and to begin immediate preparations to meet the certification requirement within the two-year compliance window.
“Compliance will be monitored, and schools are expected to reach a 75% certification rate by 2026 and 100% by 2027,” he added.
To support compliance, the government is offering a pathway for non-education graduates with at least 12 months of teaching experience.
These teachers are encouraged to enroll in the abridged certification program offered by the National Teachers Institute (NTI).
The program consists of short professional courses lasting 3 to 6 months, after which participants will be eligible for TRCN registration and licensing.
The minister also urged wide stakeholder sensitization to avoid disruptions in exam accreditation and reminded school proprietors and administrators of the risks of non-compliance.
This latest move reinforces Alausa’s earlier stance in July 2025, when he called for the removal of unqualified teachers from classrooms, describing their continued presence as detrimental to the education system.
“To rescue Nigeria’s teaching profession from mediocrity and restore its lost dignity, unqualified teachers must be removed,” he had said at the inauguration of the 5th Governing Council of the TRCN.
