The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria was established by Act 31 of 1993. Due to operational exigencies the Council could not take off effectively until June 2000.

• Determining who are teachers;
• Determining what standards of knowledge and skill are to be attained by persons seeking to become registered as teachers and raising those standards from time to time as the circumstance may permit;
• Securing in accordance with the provisions of the Act the establishment and maintenance of a register of teachers and the publication from time to time the lists of those persons;
• Regulating and controlling the teaching profession in all its aspects and ramifications;
• Classifying from time to time members of the teaching profession according to their level of training and qualifications;

Deriving from these functions the Council is:

• Empowered to approve any course of training at any institution which is intended for persons seeking to become teachers;
• Approve any qualification obtained from a course of training approved by the Council;
• Withdraw any approval given in respect of any course, qualification or institution if it fails to meet required standards;
• Visit institutions to supervise instructions and observe examinations to determine the sufficiency of such instruction and adequacy of the examination as a result of which approved qualifications are granted; and finally to
• Establish a professional code of conduct and disciplinary procedure to check misconduct and incompetence amongst registered members.