RismadarVoice Reporters, August 5, 2026
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, representing 61.54 per cent, securing credits in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
The Head of WAEC Nigeria National Office, Dr Amos Josiah Dangut, announced the results on Wednesday in Lagos, saying the performance represents a 1.42 percentage-point decline from the 2025 results.
A total of 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea registered for the examination, while 1,950,726 candidates eventually sat for it.
According to WAEC, 1,200,514 candidates, or 61.54 per cent, obtained credits in a minimum of five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
Another 1,687,378 candidates, representing 86.50 per cent, secured credits in at least five subjects, irrespective of their performance in English Language and Mathematics.
Female candidates record higher pass rate
Of the 1,200,514 candidates who obtained credits in five subjects, including English and Mathematics, 641,631, representing 32.89 per cent, were female, while 558,883, or 28.65 per cent, were male.
Overall, 997,267 females, representing 51.12 per cent of the candidates who sat the examination, were recorded against 953,459 males, representing 48.88 per cent.
Results of 5.95% candidates still being processed
WAEC said the results of 1,834,695 candidates, representing 94.05 per cent, had been fully processed and released.
However, the results of 116,031 candidates, or 5.95 per cent, were still undergoing processing at the time of the announcement.
The council also disclosed that 1,213 candidates with special needs participated in the examination. They included 137 visually impaired candidates, 491 candidates with hearing impairment, 55 candidates classified as spastic and mentally challenged, and 41 physically challenged candidates.
WAEC withholds 167,486 results over malpractice
WAEC said it withheld the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59 per cent of those who sat for the examination, over alleged examination malpractice.
The figure is lower than the 9.7 per cent recorded in 2025.
Dangut identified the continued use of mobile phones in examination halls, despite the ban, as well as organised cheating in some schools, as persistent challenges confronting the examination system.
He added that some supervisors and invigilators found to have assisted candidates in malpractice had been apprehended and would face sanctions in collaboration with the relevant state ministries of education.
WAEC highlights innovations
Dangut said the 2026 examination was the second edition of the Computer-Based WASSCE for school candidates.
Among the innovations introduced were the Digital Examiner Mark System (DEMS), designed to speed up the marking and processing of scripts, and the serialisation of question papers as part of measures to curb examination malpractice.
WAEC also introduced a new portal through which candidates can generate e-PINs directly for checking their results.
Candidates can begin checking their results online within 12 hours of the release, while digital certificates can be applied for 48 hours after results are checked.
WAEC said hard-copy certificates would be available within 90 days.
The 2026 WASSCE was conducted from April 24 to June 19, with 102,708 examiners deployed across 88 marking venues.
The council further stated that results belonging to candidates sponsored by state governments with outstanding debts to WAEC would remain withheld until the affected states settle their obligations.
