The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has raised concern over a significant drop in candidates’ performance in the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), with only 38.32 per cent of candidates obtaining five credits, including English Language and Mathematics.
This marks a sharp decline from the 72.12 per cent recorded in 2024, representing a 33.8 per cent drop.
Speaking during a press briefing on Monday at the WAEC national headquarters in Yaba, Lagos, the Head of National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, described the outcome as worrisome but stated that the conduct of the examination was largely successful despite operational challenges.
A total of 1,969,313 candidates from 23,554 schools across the country sat for the examination between April 24 and June 20, 2025. Out of this number, only 754,545 candidates met the minimum university admission benchmark of five credits including English and Mathematics.
Dr Dangut explained that the decline in performance could be linked to new security measures introduced by the Council, including the serialisation of objective test questions in core subjects like Mathematics, English, Biology, and Economics.
“This innovation was aimed at curbing malpractice. It significantly reduced instances of collusion and made cheating more difficult,” he said.
He noted that while the objective test scores dipped, essay performance remained stable, suggesting that genuine preparation played a key role in performance this year.
To enhance result processing, WAEC deployed a real-time digital scoring system for the first time, which improved both the speed and accuracy of grading. However, 451,796 candidates (22.94 per cent) are yet to receive their full results due to technical issues, which the Council said are being addressed.
Out of the total candidates, 1,517,517 (77.06 per cent) had their results fully released, while 192,089 results (9.75 per cent) were withheld over allegations of examination malpractice, including the use of mobile phones and other irregularities. This shows a slight improvement from the 11.92 per cent withheld in 2024.
Dr Dangut warned that rogue website operators and compromised officials involved in exam fraud would face sanctions, revealing that some arrests had already been made.
He also disclosed that states indebted to WAEC would not be able to access the results of their sponsored candidates until their outstanding debts are settled.
On gender participation, 992,526 candidates (50.40 per cent) were female, while 976,787 (49.60 per cent) were male. Female candidates also outperformed their male counterparts among those who passed with five credits including English and Mathematics. Females accounted for 53.99 per cent (407,353), while males made up 46.01 per cent (347,192).
The Council also made special arrangements for 12,178 candidates with special needs. This included 112 visually impaired, 615 with hearing impairments, 52 with mental challenges, and 37 with physical disabilities.
Dr Dangut encouraged candidates to access their results via the Council’s official portal and urged schools and stakeholders to support continuous improvement in teaching and learning ahead of future exams.
