The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has reaffirmed plans to migrate the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) to full computer-based testing (CBT) by 2026.
Head of National Office, Dr. Amos Dangut, gave the assurance on Tuesday in Abuja during a sensitisation meeting with members of the National Assembly Committee on Education.
He noted that the transition, which began with private candidates in 2024, had recorded “significant progress” and would be scaled up nationwide.
According to him, mock sessions and online practice platforms will be introduced to help candidates familiarise themselves with the system. “We have conducted five exams already—one for private candidates and one for school candidates—and by 2026, deployment will be massive,” Dangut said, adding that no student would be left behind.
On infrastructure and cyber risks, Dangut stressed that WAEC had successfully conducted exams in hard-to-reach areas without disruption, while candidates’ performances in CBT had been “empirically better” than in paper-based tests.
Lawmakers pledged full support for the rollout. Senator Ekong Samson, Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic and Secondary Education, said parliament would work to boost budgetary allocations to education. Similarly, Rep. Oboku Oforji urged WAEC to establish at least one CBT centre in each of Nigeria’s 774 local government areas before the 2026 deadline.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, hailed the initiative as a “historic step” aligning with reforms in curriculum, infrastructure, and digital learning tools.
“With WAEC leading this transition, we are confident that the credibility and merit-based outcomes of our examinations will be further secured,” he said.
