TRCN resolves portal glitch, launches app to enhance teacher access nationwide

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By Joseph Erunke, Abuja

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The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) has assured stakeholders that its online portal is fully stable following a brief disruption in December, while unveiling plans for a mobile application to improve teacher access nationwide.

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Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Thursday, TRCN Registrar Dr. Ronke Soyombo described reports of persistent technical failures as misleading, noting that the downtime lasted only a week and was swiftly resolved. She attributed the disruption to issues with a former service provider, which led the council to disengage the developer and migrate to a more reliable platform.

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“We had a temporary setback in December, but it was resolved immediately. Since January, the portal has remained fully functional,” Soyombo said, dismissing allegations of ongoing failures as politically motivated. She added that the council would never risk its credibility by conducting critical processes such as teacher examinations on an unstable platform.

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Acknowledging lingering access challenges for some teachers—especially in rural areas with limited digital literacy or poor internet connectivity—Soyombo said the TRCN has maintained physical registration services at state offices, deployed help desk officers in tertiary institutions, and intensified outreach programmes to ensure inclusivity.

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In a major step to further enhance accessibility, the Registrar announced that a mobile application would be launched by the end of April to make registration more seamless nationwide, with offline integration options under consideration.

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Soyombo also reiterated the council’s regulatory mandate, emphasizing that all teachers across basic, secondary, and tertiary levels must be duly registered and certified. “The teaching profession is regulated. Whether you teach children or adults, certification is mandatory,” she affirmed.

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