JAMB Spent ₦1.1bn on Feeding, ₦850m on Security in 2024

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) spent ₦1.1 billion on meals and refreshments and another ₦850 million on security, cleaning and fumigation in 2024, despite remitting just ₦4 billion in revenue and receiving ₦6 billion from the federal government in the same year.

The sum spent on feeding alone is more than 25% of the revenue the board remitted to the Federal Government account.

These details were revealed during a presentation by Ishaq Oloyede, the JAMB Registrar, before the joint committee of the Senate and House of Representatives on revenue projections for 2025.

The committee, led by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), grilled the board over its expenditures with concerns about low revenue remittance by agencies in the 2024 fiscal year

Adams Oshiomhole, representing the Edo North senatorial district, criticised JAMB’s feeding expenditure during the session.

“Are you being freely fed by the government? This money comes from poor students, many of whom are orphans,” the lawmaker said.

Oshiomhole also raised questions about the ₦850 million allocated for security, cleaning and fumigation, and the ₦600 million spent on local travel.

“What did you fumigate? Is it mosquitoes that took all this money?” Oshiomhole asked.

Lawmakers further scrutinised the ₦6.5 billion spent on local training and ₦1 billion allocated to a staff housing scheme. They demanded detailed breakdowns from the board.

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James Faleke, Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, questioned the board’s reliance on Federal Government funding despite being a self-sustaining agency.

“You remitted ₦4 billion and received ₦6 billion from the Federal Government. Why not keep the ₦4 billion and stop the government from funding JAMB?” he asked.

Meanwhile, the agency is proposed to receive ₦6.6 billion in 2025 to fund personnel costs according to the budget proposal presented by the Federal Executive Council.