…as WAEC announces urgent review of scores in four core subjects.
LAGOS, NIGERIA – The iNews Times | The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has acknowledged technical errors in the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results and announced an urgent review of scores in four core subjects: Mathematics, English Language, Biology, and Economics.
The Council, in a statement issued on Thursday, August 7, confirmed that access to the result checker portal has been temporarily suspended while internal audits are conducted to correct the discrepancies. The development follows public outrage over the dismal performance of students in the May/June examination cycle, with many stakeholders demanding explanations and, in some cases, a full cancellation of the results.
WAEC had released the WASSCE results for school candidates on Monday, August 4, revealing that only 754,545 out of 1,969,313 candidatesrepresenting a pass rate of 38.32% secured five credits and above, including English and Mathematics. The outcome marked a staggering 33.8% drop from the 72.12% recorded in 2024.
The disappointing statistics triggered nationwide concern. A federal lawmaker has since called on the examination body to urgently release the results of 192,089 candidates representing 9.75% of total entries currently withheld over allegations of examination malpractice.
In a statement signed by the acting Public Affairs Officer, Mrs. Moyosola Adesina, WAEC admitted to discovering technical bugs linked to its recent innovation in curbing exam malpractice.
“As part of our efforts to curb examination malpractice, the Council embarked on an innovation (paper serialisation) already deployed by a national examination body. It is also worth noting that this is in line with best practices in assessment,” the statement read.
Adesina noted that the paper serialisation was implemented in the four subjects now under review. However, “an internal post-result release procedure revealed some technical bugs in the results,” prompting the Council to act swiftly.
“The Council, being a responsive body that is sensitive to fairness and professionalism, has decided to urgently review and correct the technical glitches that led to the situation,” the statement continued. “As a result, access to the WASSCE (SC) 2025 results has been temporarily denied on the result checker portal.”
WAEC offered “deep and sincere apologies” to affected candidates and the general public, assuring them of transparency and speedy resolution.
“Candidates who have previously checked their WASSCE results are advised to re-check after 24 hours from Thursday, August 7,” Adesina added.
She reiterated WAEC’s commitment to upholding excellence and fairness, stating, “Thank you for always counting on our integrity and reposing confidence in us to render quality service to the Nigerian child.”
The Council also disclosed that 192,089 results were withheld over exam malpractice–a decline from the 11.92% of withheld results in 2024, now down to 9.75%.
As of press time, WAEC has yet to announce whether the review will impact university admission timelines or school resumption plans for affected candidates.
