By Winnie Onu, Makurdi
The Benue State Government has launched a sweeping digital reform in the education sector, banning all forms of illegal levies in public and private schools while introducing compulsory electronic dossiers (e-Dossiers) for every student across the state.
Executive Secretary of the Benue Education Quality Assurance and Examination Board (BEQAEB), Dr. Terna Francis, announced the measures during the board’s maiden meeting with school principals in Makurdi.
He said the new policy marks a decisive step toward transparency, accountability, and efficiency in school administration, stressing that principals or administrators who impose unauthorised fees would face sanctions.
“The e-Dossier will track every learner’s academic journey from Basic 1 to SS3, monitor student performance and mobility, and ensure credible examination processes. It will eliminate excuses, speed up results, and restore integrity to our education system,” he said.
Francis added that all examination-related payments have been automated, with transactions now restricted to online or bank channels, adding that any staff found collecting cash or issuing manual receipts, he warned, would face disciplinary action.
He commended Governor Hyacinth Alia for restructuring the state’s examination management system through the merger of the defunct Examination Board and the Bureau for Education Quality Assurance, describing the reform as “a total rebirth aimed at integrity and efficiency.”
The executive secretary also announced that registration fees for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and Mock SSCE have been pegged at N18,250, with an N8,000 palliative approved by the governor to reduce costs for early registrants.
Francis further directed that no student would be allowed to sit for any external examination without participating in the compulsory Mock SSCE and cautioned school heads against manipulating the process.
On curriculum enforcement, he clarified that the BECE remains the first legal school-leaving certificate under federal policy and warned that issuing certificates after Primary Six now violates national standards.
“Our enforcement unit has been empowered to ensure full compliance,” he said. “Violators will be sanctioned without exception.”
