Sierra Leone Eyes JAMB Model As Board Decides 2026 Cut-off Marks Today

Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) will today hold its 2026 Policy Meeting where critical guidelines for admissions into tertiary institutions in Nigeria wil be adopted, including the determination of the minimum admissible scores for candidates.

The meeting, which will be chaired by the minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa,  has attracted international attention as Sierra Leone moves to understudy Nigeria’s centralised admission system with a view to replicating the JAMB model.

JAMB’s public communication advisor, Dr Fabian Benjamin, disclosed this in a statement posted on his X handle  yesterday

According to him, the annual policy meeting remains one of the most significant events in Nigeria’s education calendar as stakeholders in the tertiary education sector converge to deliberate on admission procedures for universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.

“Tomorrow, Monday, 11th May, is a significant day as the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) will hold its 2026 Policy Meeting, to be chaired by the Honourable Minister of Education.

“At the meeting, guidelines for the 2026 admission into all tertiary institutions in Nigeria will be considered and adopted, including the determination of the minimum tolerable scores for admissions,” he stated.

Benjamin revealed that this year’s meeting would also feature the participation of Sierra Leone’s deputy minister of Education, Mr Sarjoh Aziz Kamara, alongside the vice-chancellor of Ernest Bai Koroma University of Science and Technology, Prof. Edwin Momoh, and the vice-chancellor of Njala University, Prof. Bashiru Koroma.

According to him, the Sierra Leonean delegation is in Nigeria to understudy the nation’s admission and examination system as their country plans to establish a body similar to JAMB to streamline and coordinate admissions into tertiary institutions.

Benjamin explained that the delegation had been taken through the board’s examination and admission processes at JAMB headquarters in Bwari, Abuja, ahead of riday’s policy meeting.

He added that the visitors would also witness firsthand how stakeholders are integrated into Nigeria’s admission process through the policy meeting framework.

“The delegation was today taken through the examination and admission processes at the Board’s headquarters in Bwari.

“During tomorrow’s Policy Meeting, they will also witness firsthand how critical stakeholders are actively carried along in the admission value chain,” Dr Fabian said.

He said the Sierra Leonean officials expressed appreciation to JAMB, noting that the growing admission population in their country has created serious challenges which Nigeria’s model appears well-positioned to address.