TRCN portal now stable after one week of glitches in December — Soyombo
By Uji A. Iliyasu, Abuja
The Registrar of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Dr Ronke Soyombo, has assured teachers and stakeholders that the council’s digital portal is now stable after a brief disruption in December caused by technical issues with its former service provider.
Dr Soyombo gave the assurance on Thursday while addressing journalists in Abuja, following concerns raised by some teachers over alleged persistent technical problems affecting the portal.
She explained that the portal experienced downtime for only one week in December, after which the council disengaged the developer responsible for the technical issues and migrated to a new service provider.
“In December, we had some issues with the developer, so our portal was down for one week. We resolved it and switched to another developer,” she said.
The Registrar dismissed claims that the portal continued to experience failures, describing such reports as misleading and politically motivated,
and stressed that the council remains committed to efficiency and revenue generation, noting that it would be counterproductive for the council to organise teachers’ examinations while operating a faulty digital platform.
“As much as I am an educationist, I also have a responsibility to generate revenue for government. Every agency is expected to remit 50 per cent. I would not announce an examination and have the portal down. That would be counterproductive.”
Dr Soyombo, however, acknowledged that some teachers still face challenges accessing the portal due to limited digital literacy.
To address this, she said the council has continued to provide alternative channels, including physical registration at TRCN state offices across the country.
“We still have teachers who cannot access the portal because of digital literacy issues. That is why our state offices remain open. At no time in January was the portal down.”
On inclusivity, particularly for teachers in rural areas with poor internet connectivity, the Registrar said the council is making efforts to bridge the gap through the deployment of help desk officers in tertiary institutions, mobile outreach programmes in some states, and sensitisation campaigns in underserved communities.
She added that collaboration with stakeholders such as the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), state commissioners for education, and education administrators has been instrumental in expanding access to registration and certification.
“We are not fully there yet; it is still a work in progress. But we are making efforts to ensure inclusivity and reach teachers in rural areas.”
Responding to suggestions on offline integration, Dr Soyombo said the council is exploring the idea but is currently focused on launching a mobile application to improve accessibility.
“By the end of April, we intend to introduce an app that will make access more convenient for users. We will also consider offline integration as suggested.”
Speaking on teacher certification, the Registrar reiterated that all individuals engaged in teaching, from early childhood to tertiary level, must be registered and certified by TRCN in line with the council’s mandate.
“Whether you teach children or adults, you must be certified. The minimum qualification is the Nigeria Certificate in Education or a degree with relevant education training such as a Postgraduate Diploma in Education.”