The registrar of the National Examinations Council (NECO), Ibrahim Wushishi, says the council will deepen collaboration with the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).

Mr Wushishi disclosed this during a courtesy visit to NOUN on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said the partnership would enhance result verification and promote computer-based examinations nationwide.

According to him, the move will safeguard the integrity of NECO certificates and ensure only candidates with authentic results gain admission into NOUN.

Mr Wushishi congratulated the NOUN vice-chancellor, Uduma Oji Uduma, on his appointment, describing him as “a seasoned administrator with proven academic integrity.”

He explained that the visit had three objectives, including formally felicitating with the vice-chancellor and exploring collaboration on result authentication through NECO’s e-Verify platform.

The NECO registrar added that discussions also focused on areas of cooperation in computer-based testing.

Mr Wushishi recalled that NECO previously handled verification manually, a process that often took months to process requests from institutions in over 50 countries.

“The introduction of the NECO e-Verify system two years ago has transformed the process,” he said.

He disclosed that nearly five million results had already been verified electronically through the platform.

“With the API integration, institutions can seamlessly confirm the authenticity of candidates’ NECO results without delay,” Mr Wushishi said.

He urged NOUN to key into the platform to strengthen its admission screening process.

Mr Wushishi also highlighted NOUN’s extensive CBT infrastructure nationwide.

He noted that NECO was aligning with the Federal Ministry of Education’s policy to migrate fully from paper-based to computer-based examinations.

Responding, the NOUN vice-chancellor, Mr Uduma, welcomed the initiative and assured NECO of the university’s readiness to collaborate.

“Result verification is critical to maintaining academic integrity. Any certificate not verified lacks credibility,” Mr Uduma said.

He stated that NOUN, which admits about 40,000 students annually, was committed to ensuring all admitted candidates presented authentic credentials.

Mr Uduma disclosed that the university would begin integration with the NECO e-Verify platform from the 2026 admission cycle.

He also affirmed NOUN’s willingness to support NECO’s CBT expansion, citing its network of about 128 study centres nationwide.

To fast-track implementation, Mr Uduma revealed the constitution of a joint committee of academic and ICT officials to interface with NECO.

(NAN)