The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) released the results of the 2026 Computer-Based WASSCE for School Candidates on Wednesday, with 1,200,514 candidates (61.54%) obtaining credits or above in a minimum of five subjects, including the English language and mathematics.
Dr. Amos Josiah Dangut, head of the WAEC Nigeria National Office, announced the results in Lagos, saying they represent a 1.42% decline from 2025.
The examination attracted 1,959,668 applicants from 24,207 schools in Nigeria, the Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, and Equatorial Guinea. 1,950,726 people took the exam.
Of those who sat, 1,200,514 candidates—61.54%—obtained credits and above in five subjects, including English and math.
1,687,378 candidates—86.50%—obtained credits and above in a minimum of five subjects with or without English and math.
Among the 1.2m candidates who passed English and math:
– 558,883, or 28.65%, were male
– 641,631–32.89% were female
Overall, 953,459 males—48.88%—and 997,267 females—51.12%—sat the exam.
Dr. Dangut stated that 1,834,695 candidates, or 94.05%, have had their findings fully processed and released. Results for 116,031 individuals, or 5.95%, are still being processed.
A total of 1,213 candidates with special needs have registered. This includes 137 visually impaired, 491 with impaired hearing, 55 spastic and mentally challenged, and 41 physically challenged.
WAEC withheld the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59%, due to examination misconduct. This is 1.11% lower than the 9.7% reported in 2025.
“The increasing use of cell phones in the examination hall, in spite of the existing ban, and organized cheating in some schools, are other nagging issues,” Dr. Dangut said.
During his third and final briefing as head of WAEC Nigeria, Dr. Dangut stated that some supervisors and invigilators involved in malpractice have been apprehended and will face sanctions through state ministries of education.
The Council conducted CB-WASSCE for school candidates for the second time in 2026.
Other innovations include the Digital Examiner Mark System (DEMS) for faster processing and question paper serialization to combat malpractice.
