LAGOS: The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has withheld the results of 167,486 candidates who sat for the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) over alleged examination malpractice.
The affected candidates account for 8.59 percent of the 1,950,726 students who participated in the examination, marking a slight improvement from the 9.7 percent malpractice rate recorded in the 2025 WASSCE.
The announcement was made on Wednesday in Lagos by the Head of WAEC Nigeria National Office, Dr. Amos Dangut, during the official release of the 2026 WASSCE results.
According to Dr. Dangut, the withheld results are linked to various forms of examination malpractice, including the continued use of mobile phones inside examination halls despite an existing ban and organized cheating in some schools.
He also disclosed that several supervisors and invigilators allegedly caught aiding candidates to cheat have been arrested and will face disciplinary measures through the appropriate state Ministries of Education. The increasing use of cell phones in the examination hall, in spite of the existing ban, and organised cheating in some schools remain major concerns,” Dangut said.
WAEC revealed that 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, and Equatorial Guinea registered for the examination, while 1,950,726 candidates eventually sat for the papers.
The council reported that:
- 1,200,514 candidates (61.54%) obtained credits in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
- 1,687,378 candidates (86.50%) earned credits in a minimum of five subjects, with or without English Language and Mathematics.
- The pass rate for candidates who obtained five credits including English and Mathematics declined by 1.42 percentage points compared to the 2025 examination.
Among the 1.2 million successful candidates who secured five credits including English and Mathematics:
- 558,883 (28.65%) were male.
- 641,631 (32.89%) were female.
Overall participation showed that 997,267 females (51.12%) and 953,459 males (48.88%) took part in the examination.
WAEC said 1,834,695 candidates, representing 94.05 percent, have had their results fully processed and released However, the results of 116,031 candidates (5.95 percent) are still being processed and will be released after the completion of necessary verification procedures.
The examination body also disclosed that 1,213 candidates with special needs participated in the 2026 WASSCE.
The figure includes:
- 137 visually impaired candidates
- 491 hearing-impaired candidates
- 55 spastic and mentally challenged candidates
- 41 physically challenged candidates
WAEC reiterated its commitment to ensuring equal opportunities for all candidates regardless of physical challenges.
The 2026 WASSCE marked the second edition of the Computer-Based Test (CBT) format for school candidates.
Dr. Dangut said WAEC introduced several technological innovations to strengthen examination integrity and improve result processing.
These include:
- The Digital Examiner Mark System to speed up marking and result compilation.
- Serialization of question papers to reduce examination malpractice.
- A new online platform that enables candidates to generate e-PINs directly for checking their results.
The examination was conducted between April 24 and June 19, 2026, with 102,708 examiners engaged across 88 marking centres.
WAEC further warned that candidates sponsored by state governments that are yet to settle their financial obligations to the council may not have their results released until the outstanding debts are cleared.
Dr. Dangut, who described the briefing as his third and final official engagement as Head of the WAEC Nigeria National Office, urged schools, parents, and candidates to continue supporting efforts aimed at eliminating examination malpractice and preserving the credibility of public examinations.
