The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has released the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, with 1,200,514 candidates obtaining at least five credits, including English Language and Mathematics, while the results of 167,486 candidates were withheld over alleged examination malpractice.

The examination body announced the results on Wednesday in Lagos.

Speaking during the announcement, the Head of the WAEC National Office, Dr Amos Josiah Dangut, said the number of candidates who obtained five credits, including English and Mathematics, represents 61.54 per cent of those who sat the examination. He added that the figure is 1.42 per cent lower than the 2025 performance.

According to WAEC, 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools registered for the examination held across Nigeria, the Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea.

Out of the registered candidates, 1,950,726 sat the examination.

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

Among the candidates who obtained five credits, including English and Mathematics, 558,883 were male, while 641,631 were female.

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WAEC said 953,459 male candidates and 997,267 female candidates sat the examination.

The council added that 1,834,695 candidates, representing 94.05 per cent, have had their results fully processed and released.

It said the results of 116,031 candidates, representing 5.95 per cent, are still being processed.

WAEC also disclosed that 1,213 candidates with special needs registered for the examination. They include 137 visually impaired candidates, 491 with hearing impairment, 55 spastic and mentally challenged candidates, and 41 physically challenged candidates.

On examination malpractice, WAEC said it withheld the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59 per cent of candidates who sat the examination.

“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.

He added that some supervisors and invigilators caught helping candidates cheat had been apprehended and would face sanctions through the State Ministries of Education.

Dr Dangut said the 2026 examination was the second Computer-Based WASSCE conducted for school candidates.

He also announced that candidates can now apply for digital certificates 48 hours after checking their results online.

Other new measures introduced by WAEC include the Digital Examiner Mark System (DEMS) for faster marking, serialised question papers to reduce examination malpractice and a new portal that allows candidates to generate e-PINs directly to check their results.

Candidates can check their results within 12 hours through the WAEC result portal, while hard copies of certificates will be ready within 90 days.