By Sandra Kenneth
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has withheld the results of 167,486 candidates—representing 8.59 per cent of those who sat the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for school candidates—over reported examination malpractice.
Despite the high number, the council noted a slight drop in recorded infractions compared to the 9.7 per cent registered in the 2025 examination.
The Head of WAEC’s Nigeria National Office, Dr. Amos Dangut, announced the release of the results on Wednesday during his third and final press briefing in Lagos.
Mobile Phones, Organized Cheating Blamed
According to Dangut, the results were withheld due to widespread infractions, notably the persistent smuggling of mobile phones into examination halls and organized cheating networks operating within certain schools.
“The increasing use of cell phones in the examination hall, in spite of the existing ban, and organized cheating in some schools, are other nagging issues,” Dangut stated.
He added that several invigilators and supervisors caught assisting candidates during the examination were arrested and handed over to their respective state ministries of education for disciplinary action.
Performance Statistics Breakdown
Out of 1,959,668 candidates registered across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, and Equatorial Guinea, a total of 1,950,726 candidates eventually sat the examination.
The performance metrics show that:
1,200,514 candidates (61.54 per cent) obtained credits and above in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics. This represents a 1.42 percentage point decline compared to the 2025 results.
1,687,378 candidates (86.50 per cent) secured credits in five subjects with or without English Language and Mathematics.
1,834,695 candidates (94.05 per cent) have had their results fully processed and released, while 116,031 results (5.95 per cent) are still being processed.
Female candidates out-performed their male counterparts in the core subject metric: of the 1.2 million candidates who earned credits in both English and Mathematics, 641,631 (32.89 per cent) were female, compared to 558,883 (28.65 per cent) males. Overall participation was slightly skewed toward females, who made up 51.12 per cent of total test-takers.
The examination also catered to 1,213 candidates with special needs, including 491 candidates with hearing impairment, 137 visually impaired, 55 spastic and mentally challenged, and 41 physically challenged candidates.
Technological Innovations and Debts
The 2026 diet marked the second edition of the Computer-Based WASSCE for school candidates. The exam, conducted between April 24 and June 19, involved 102,708 examiners across 88 marking centers.
Dangut highlighted key innovations deployed during the exercise, including a Digital Examiner Mark System to accelerate processing speed, question paper serialization to combat cheating, and a direct e-PIN generation portal for candidates checking results online.
However, Dangut issued a stern warning regarding indebted state governments, declaring that candidates sponsored by states owing the council will have their results withheld until all outstanding payments are cleared.
