The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Registrar Professor Segun Aina, and officials of the Nigerian High Commission in Ottawa, Canada, are working towards establishing a Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination centre in Ottawa from 2027, in a move designed to make Nigeria’s university entrance examination more accessible to Nigerians living in Canada and other parts of North America.
The proposed centre would allow eligible candidates seeking admission into Nigerian universities and other tertiary institutions to sit the UTME in Canada instead of travelling to Nigeria solely for the examination.
Also read: JAMB sacks staff over candidate extortion
JAMB announced the plan on Monday, October 5, following Aina’s visit to the Nigerian High Commission in Ottawa, where the proposed examination centre was discussed.
The board said the initiative forms part of its wider effort to expand access to Nigerian tertiary education for Nigerians living abroad.
“The proposed centre will make it easier for Nigerians in the diaspora to sit for the UTME without travelling to Nigeria solely for the examination,” JAMB said.
The board added that the initiative would strengthen the relationship between Nigerians abroad and the Nigerian education system while creating opportunities to showcase Nigerian tertiary education internationally.
For Nigerians in Canada, the proposal could remove a significant logistical hurdle.
Candidates who currently need to make an international journey to Nigeria simply to take the entrance examination would, once the centre becomes operational, have an examination option much closer to home.
JAMB described the move as part of its effort to make the UTME “more accessible, inclusive and globally connected”, while creating more pathways for Nigerians in the diaspora who want to pursue tertiary education in Nigeria.
The announcement comes as JAMB continues to administer the UTME beyond Nigeria’s borders.
The board’s official frequently asked questions page currently lists foreign examination locations including Abidjan, Accra, Banjul, Beau, Cotonou, Jeddah, Johannesburg and London.
JAMB has also previously announced foreign examinations across countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, demonstrating that overseas access to the UTME is not entirely new.
The proposed Ottawa centre would, however, extend that network to Canada and potentially make the examination more accessible to candidates across North America.
The scale of the UTME helps explain why access remains an important issue.
A total of 2,243,816 candidates registered for the 2026 UTME, an increase of about 10.5 per cent from the 2.03 million candidates registered in 2025.
Although the overwhelming majority of candidates are based in Nigeria, JAMB’s 2026 registration figures included candidates from several countries outside the country.
Côte d’Ivoire recorded 32 foreign registrations, followed by Equatorial Guinea with 16, Burkina Faso with 14 and the United Kingdom with 12.
Candidates also registered from countries including Gambia, Ghana and South Africa.
The proposed JAMB UTME Canada centre therefore comes against a backdrop of an increasingly international Nigerian examination system, particularly for members of the diaspora who maintain educational links with the country.
The board has not yet published the operational details for the Ottawa centre.
As of the latest announcement, there is no publicly stated examination venue address, registration timetable, candidate capacity or Canada-specific fee structure for the proposed centre.
Those details are likely to be important for prospective candidates once the 2027 registration process begins.
Until JAMB issues formal guidance, candidates and families would need to rely on the board’s official communication channels rather than unofficial announcements.
The proposed centre is also significant for families whose children were educated in Canada but intend to pursue higher education in Nigeria.
Sitting the UTME closer to home could make that pathway more practical without requiring candidates to organise a separate trip to Nigeria solely for the entrance examination.
JAMB’s move could also give Nigerian tertiary institutions another channel through which to maintain links with the country’s growing diaspora.
The board said the initiative would provide greater opportunities to promote Nigerian tertiary education internationally while strengthening the connection between Nigerians abroad and institutions at home.
“For Nigerians in Canada, the UTME is coming closer to home,” JAMB said.
For now, the Ottawa centre remains a planned development rather than an operational examination venue.
If preparations proceed as announced, eligible Nigerians in Canada and other parts of North America will have a new route into Nigeria’s tertiary education system from the 2027 UTME cycle.
Also read: JAMB sacks staff over candidate extortion
The development marks another step in JAMB’s effort to take the examination beyond Nigeria’s borders while making it easier for Nigerians abroad to maintain an educational connection with home.
David Okere is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering business, governance, public affairs, and human-interest stories with a commitment to accuracy, balance, and public interest reporting.
