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Pupils and students seeking admission into schools in Oyo State must now present birth certificates and National Identification Numbers as part of a new enrolment policy, the state’s Ministry of Education has announced.
Permanent Secretary Oyinloye Bamidele told the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday that the requirement is being enforced in collaboration with the National Identity Management Commission and is designed to bring school records into the digital age.
According to Bamidele, all enrolment data is now captured and stored in a central digital database, moving away from the old paper-based system.
“We are in a digital age, so, once a pupil or student is registered, it goes into our central database. We have all our records digitised,” she said.
She noted that some parents face difficulties obtaining birth certificates for their children, noting that this remains the biggest hurdle to full compliance.
However, she said the ministry offers some flexibility, allowing students to obtain their NIN at a later stage before they sit for final examinations.
To ease the process, the ministry has partnered with NIMC to conduct registration exercises in schools with large numbers of unregistered pupils.
Bamidele assured parents and guardians that the digitised database is secure and not open to public access. Only authorised education officials can view the records, while researchers may access approved data for specific purposes.
“The data is secured and not accessible to everybody. The ministry provides privacy, security and responsible use of students’ personal data as Oyo State advances digitalisation of education records and services,” she said.
