WAEC Releases 2026 WASSCE Results

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has released the results of the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for school candidates, with 1,200,514 candidates obtaining at least five credits, including English Language and Mathematics.

The results were announced on Wednesday in Lagos by the Head of the WAEC National Office, Dr. Amos Josiah Dangut. He said the figure represents 61.54 per cent of candidates who sat for the examination, reflecting a 1.42 per cent decline compared to the 2025 performance.

According to WAEC, 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools registered for the examination conducted across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea. Out of the total registered, 1,950,726 candidates participated in the examination.

The council disclosed that 1,687,378 candidates, representing 86.50 per cent, secured at least five credits with or without English Language and Mathematics.

A breakdown of the successful candidates who obtained five credits, including English and Mathematics, showed that 558,883 were male, representing 28.65 per cent, while 641,631 were female, representing 32.89 per cent.

Overall, 953,459 male candidates, representing 48.88 per cent, and 997,267 female candidates, representing 51.12 per cent, sat for the examination.

Dr. Dangut said WAEC had successfully processed and released the results of 1,834,695 candidates, accounting for 94.05 per cent of those who wrote the examination. He added that the results of 116,031 candidates, representing 5.95 per cent, were still being processed.

The council also recorded the participation of 1,213 candidates with special needs. They included 137 visually impaired candidates, 491 candidates with hearing impairment, 55 candidates described as spastic and mentally challenged, and 41 physically challenged candidates.

WAEC withheld the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59 per cent of those who sat for the examination, over alleged involvement in examination malpractice. The council noted that this was lower than the 9.7 per cent recorded in 2025.

Dr. Dangut attributed many of the malpractice cases to the continued use of mobile phones in examination halls despite the ban, as well as organised cheating in some schools. He added that supervisors and invigilators found assisting candidates in malpractice had been identified and would face disciplinary measures through their respective State Ministries of Education.

The examination body also announced several improvements introduced during the 2026 examination. These include the Digital Examiner Mark System (DEMS), which is designed to speed up the marking process, the serialisation of question papers to reduce examination malpractice, and a new online platform that allows candidates to generate e-PINs directly for checking their results.

Dr. Dangut, who described the briefing as his third and final one as Head of WAEC Nigeria, noted that this was the second time the council conducted the Computer-Based WASSCE for school candidates.

WAEC said candidates can now apply for digital certificates 48 hours after checking their results through the council’s online portal. The council also announced that registration for the 2026 Second Series WASSCE for private candidates is ongoing at a fee of N37,500, with provision for walk-in candidates.

In addition, WAEC disclosed that its compiled past questions and answers are now available for purchase at N5,200 per subject combination.

Candidates are expected to access their examination results online within 12 hours, while hard copies of certificates will be ready within 90 days.

The 2026 WASSCE for school candidates was conducted between April 24 and June 19, 2026, with 102,708 examiners participating in the marking exercise across 88 marking centres.

WAEC also stated that results of candidates sponsored by state governments that are yet to settle outstanding debts owed to the council will remain withheld until the payments are made.