The head of the Nigeria National Office of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Amos Dangut, has insisted that there was no leakage of question papers during the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), despite the delays that affected the conduct of some papers across the country.
During the examination, candidates writing Mathematics and Agricultural Science in several states sat for their papers late into the evening following delays in the delivery of question papers and answer booklets.
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WAEC had attributed the disruption to logistical and operational challenges, including a fatal road accident on the Gombe-Yola highway that claimed the lives of three of its officials.
Dangut made the clarification on Thursday while receiving a delegation from the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), led by its Secretary-General, Oladimeji Uthman, at the council’s headquarters in Yaba, Lagos.
He said that although the examination faced security, logistics and other operational challenges, its integrity was never compromised.
According to him, new measures introduced by WAEC, including enhanced cyber monitoring, helped reduce examination malpractice and prevented question papers from being leaked online.
“This year, I want to make it clear that the rate of examination malpractice reduced significantly. The circulation of our examination papers on the internet also reduced greatly.
“Based on reports from our cyber monitoring team and feedback from stakeholders, there was no leakage of question papers during this examination,” Dangut said.
He added that any glitches recorded in a few states were promptly detected and addressed.
“Whatever glitches occurred in a few states, we have systems in place to detect and correct them. They will not affect candidates’ performance because we have ways of resolving each issue as it arises,” he said.
Dangut explained that some of the logistical challenges were caused by the late conclusion of candidates’ registration, following adjustments to the national curriculum.
He said registration ended in April after an extension approved by the Federal Ministry of Education, leaving WAEC with limited time to print examination materials before the examinations began in May.
“Registration closed in April. Between April and the start of the examinations in May, there was very little time for printing. The delay was due to timing, not because WAEC was unprepared,” he said.
To prevent a recurrence, Dangut announced that registration for the 2027 WASSCE for school candidates would begin in September and end in December 2026.
He also reaffirmed WAEC’s commitment to expanding Computer-Based WASSCE (CB-WASSCE), describing it as a long-term solution to examination malpractice and question-paper leakage.
“Computer-based WASSCE is the way forward. It eliminates the need to transport question papers to examination centres, ensuring they are released at the right time,” he said.
Dangut explained that question papers are most vulnerable after they are handed over to supervisors for distribution to examination centres, adding that computer-based testing removes that risk.
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