The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has withheld 167,486 results from the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for school candidates over alleged examination malpractice.
Announcing the release of the results in Lagos, the Head of the National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, said the withheld results represent 8.59 per cent of candidates who sat for the examination, a decline from the 9.7 per cent recorded in 2025. He added that all reported cases are under investigation and affected candidates can seek redress through WAEC’s complaint portal.
A total of 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools registered for the examination, while 1,950,726 sat for the exercise in Nigeria and selected schools in Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea.
WAEC said 1,834,695 candidates, representing 94.05 per cent, had their results fully processed and released, while 116,031 results remain under processing due to unresolved issues that the council expects to conclude within a few days.
Dangut said the 2026 examination featured major technological improvements, including the nationwide introduction of Computer-Based Testing (CBT), making WAEC the first examining body in Nigeria to implement CBT for school candidates on such a scale. He also announced the introduction of a Digital Examiner Marking System and an electronic PIN platform that enables candidates to check results and obtain digital certificates without Smart Identity Cards. The council, however, warned that mobile phone use, organised cheating and rogue websites remain major threats to the credibility of examinations.
The WAEC boss acknowledged challenges such as inflation-driven operational costs, logistics delays, late registrations and examination malpractice but described the conduct of the 2026 WASSCE as largely successful.
He noted that 1,213 candidates with special needs were adequately accommodated during the examination, while digital certificates will be available within 48 hours of result release and printed certificates after 90 days. Registration for the 2026 WASSCE for Private Candidates (Second Series) is ongoing.
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