By Ghazali Ibrahim
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has announced the release of the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results for school candidates.
According to the examination body, 1,200,514 candidates obtained credit passes in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
WAEC’s Nigeria National Office Head, Dr Amos Josiah Dangut, disclosed this on Wednesday in Lagos, stating that the figure represents 61.54 per cent of the total candidates who sat for the examination.
He noted that the performance recorded a slight decline of 1.42 percentage points compared with the 2025 WASSCE results.
A total of 1,950,726 candidates participated in the examination after 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea registered.
The council further revealed that 1,687,378 candidates, representing 86.50 per cent, earned credits in five subjects, irrespective of their results in English Language and Mathematics.
WAEC said it has completed the processing of 1,834,695 candidates’ results, while the results of 116,031 candidates are still being finalised.
The examination body also disclosed that 167,486 candidates had their results withheld over alleged examination malpractice, representing 8.59 per cent of candidates who sat for the examination.
Dangut said cases of malpractice were mainly linked to the use of mobile phones in examination halls and organised cheating, adding that supervisors and invigilators involved in aiding misconduct would face sanctions.
The 2026 examination was the second WASSCE for school candidates conducted with a Computer-Based Testing (CBT) option, alongside the traditional paper format.
Candidates have been directed to check their results through WAEC’s official result-checking platforms.
