Only 38.32% of candidates who sat for the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) earned credits in at least five subjects, including English and Mathematics, according to the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).
This represents a sharp drop from the 72.12% recorded in 2024—a 33.8% decline.
Amos Dangut, WAEC’s Head of Nigeria National Office, revealed this during a press briefing in Lagos. He said out of 1,969,313 candidates who took the exam, 1,718,090 (87.24%) obtained credit in at least five subjects, regardless of English or Maths. However, only 754,545 met the crucial benchmark that includes both English and Mathematics.
Of those who met the standard, 46.01% were male and 53.99% were female. The 2025 exam included 12,178 candidates with special needs, all of whom were accommodated. The gender ratio showed near parity, with 49.60% male and 50.40% female candidates.
Dangut acknowledged that logistical challenges and the serialisation of objective papers to curb malpractice may have contributed to the lower scores. He also cited a decline in objective paper performance, although essay results remained stable.
Furthermore, 77.06% of the candidates had their results fully processed, while 22.94% had issues still under resolution. WAEC is withholding the results of 192,089 candidates (9.75%) over suspected malpractice, a decrease from 11.92% in 2024.
WAEC confirmed plans to fully deploy computer-based WASSCE in 2026 and urged candidates to access their digital certificates online within 48 hours. The council also called on indebted state governments to settle their dues to enable affected students to view their results.
What You Should Know
The 2025 WASSCE results reflect a worrying 33.8% decline in the number of candidates passing with credits in both English and Mathematics compared to the previous year. This drop has raised concerns about the effectiveness of current educational strategies and the impact of WAEC’s new serialisation method aimed at curbing malpractice.
The exam saw widespread participation, including thousands of students with special needs, and nearly half a million results are still pending processing.
While the council celebrates the success of digital innovations and increased exam integrity, the performance slump highlights the need for urgent reforms in Nigeria’s secondary education system.
