By Ngozi Nwankwo
National Examinations Council, NECO, has unveiled the NECOe-Verify platform, a portal for verification and confirmation of results.
The Registrar/Chief Executive of NECO, Prof. Ibrahim Wushishi said the “NECO e-Verify” is an Online Result Verification solution that guarantees instant authentication of academic and basic information about prospective candidates for admission and employment into academic institutions and work places respectively.
He said due to the growing need for verification and confirmation of results by institutions both home and abroad, the Council decided that now was the best time to introduce the e-Verify platform.
“We are all gathered here today to witness the introduction of the portal for verification and confirmation of results (NECOe-Verify). Prior to this time, all requests for verification and/or confirmation of results were routed through the Council’s Headquarters in Minna, which took a longer time to process.
“Due to the growing need for verification and confirmation of results by institutions both
home and abroad, the Council decided that now was the best time to introduce the e-Verify platform.
“From the available records at our disposal, we have observed that there were requests for verification and confirmation of results from sixty-four (64) institutions across thirty-seven countries over a two-year period (2020-2022). Similarly, we have such requests from seventy-two institutions in Nigeria within the same period-this is besides requests from individuals which are numerous,” said Wushishi.
The NECO Registrar expressed hope that academic institutions and employers of labour, among other agencies, would rely on verification of results to help them select the best prospective students for admission and employment purposes.
“Result verification is an important process that helps to ensure the accuracy of academic credentials. By verifying the authenticity of candidates’ results, academic institutions and employers will be more confident that they are admitting and hiring persons who have the required qualification for further studies and specific job schedules,” he said.
The Registrar highlighted some of the importance of result verification to include reduced risk. He said admitting/hiring unqualified persons can lead to a number of risks such as poor academic performance, decreased productivity, low morale and fraudulent behaviors that can retard the progress of the institution and businesses. Result verification helps to reduce these risks by ensuring that only qualified candidates are admitted and hired.
He said it improves efficiency, adding that, with proper verification of candidates’ results, institutions and businesses will run more efficiently as they will be able to recruit the best applicants that are capable of learning faster and employees that can carry out their duties without or with minimal supervision.
“It is against this backdrop that the National Examinations Council, as part of its efforts in meeting with global standards, has found it necessary to deploy cutting-edge technology to improve candidates’ experiences as they seek to advance their educational pursuit. With a delightful heart and deep sense of responsibility therefore, we are pleased to present to you, our esteemed stakeholders, and the NECO e-Verify Result Verification/Confirmation System. This enviable feat, no doubt, will bring a great deal of relief to millions of our candidates, educational institutions and other stakeholders. Please join me as I take you through the workings of the NECO e-Verify Platform,” said Wushishi.