Mr. Opeolu Stephen Akinola, CEO and co-founder of Accesstech Innovation and Research Centre GTE Ltd., today congratulated Professor Segun Aina on his appointment as the new Registrar and Chief Executive of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

In a statement issued in Lagos, Akinola expressed his enthusiasm that the new JAMB boss belongs to a generation that embraces Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as a tool for inclusive development, and notably has ICT as his own area of specialization.

Akinola, who brings more than 25 years of experience in deploying ICT/assistve technology infrastructure to expand opportunities for visually impaired persons in education and employment, commended Professor Aina’s five-year strategy to reduce stress for candidates. He noted that computer-based testing (CBT) offers blind candidates the same convenience it offers their sighted counterparts when sitting the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), which JAMB conducts annually.

As a pioneer computer trainer of blind persons in Nigeria, Akinola pointed to the sharp rise in computer literacy among blind students, which contributed to a 71% pass rate in the 2015 and 2016 UTME sittings.

“I implore the new Registrar to resuscitate CBT for blind candidates as a priority part of his five-year strategy, and I am willing to assist the examination body in providing the equipment and skills to achieve success in this,” Akinola said.

A 2022 Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC) who also holds a master’s degree in Disability Studies, University of LeedsUK, Akinola further identified screen readers, magnification software, and refreshable Braille devices as assistive technologies that would make testing equally accessible for blind candidates and people with low vision.