FG Abolishes Catchment Area Policy in Federal Tertiary Institutions, Admission Will Now be Based on Merit

The federal government during the weekend said it has abolished the policy of catchment areas in the admission of new students into federal government-owned universities and has threatened sanction against universities that contravene this decision.

The Federal government said the new policy would commence from 2020. President Muhammadu Buhari disclosed this at the 45th convocation ceremony of the University of Benin in Edo State. The President who was represented by the Deputy Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Suleiman Yusuf directed all federal universities to ensure that every local government, all states and all geopolitical zones are represented in their admission of the new entrance.

Before the recent development, the Catchment policy at the course of admission enable a higher percentage of candidates for admission consideration, selected based on catchment area.