The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has extended its 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME) registration exercise by one week starting from Wednesday, February 15.

This is contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday by the Head, Public Affairs and Protocol of the board, Dr Fabian Benjamin.

Benjamin said that by the extension, the sale of ePINs would end on Monday, February 20, while the UTME registration would end on Wednesday, February 22.

“Recall that in line with the board’s 2023 schedule of activities, as earlier released, the closing date for the sale of both the ePINs and the 2023 UTME application documents was slated for Tuesday, February 14.

“1,527,068 candidates have successfully registered for the 2023 UTME exercise inclusive of the 168,748, who indicated their interest to take the mock-UTME as at the close of the sale of ePINs on Tuesday, February 14.

“It should also be noted that the board, based on its projections, had expanded its capacity to register up to a 100,000 candidates per day.

“With this, it was possible to register all desiring candidates within the space of a few days. However, less than 50,000 candidates were turning up for registration which is less than the installed registration capacity.

“Surprisingly, in the last two days before the closing date, the pace picked up remarkably with over 100,000 candidates registering on a daily basis.

“Furthermore, the board, as a responsive and proactive agency, took cognisance of the reports from across the country indicating some difficulties being faced by many Nigerians in using their electronic channels to purchase the ePINs or obtain cash readily within the stipulated period,”he said.

Benjamin said the board, thereafter, granted the extension to ensure that all candidates who desired to register for the 2023 UTME were given the opportunity to do so especially when the extant challenges were not of their own making. (NAN)

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