The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has announced that candidates who sat for the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) can now apply for their digital certificates 48 hours after checking their results online.
The announcement was made on Wednesday during the official release of the 2026 Computer-Based WASSCE results for school candidates.
Speaking in Lagos, the Head of the WAEC National Office, Dr. Amos Josiah Dangut, said candidates can obtain their digital certificates through the council’s online platform shortly after accessing their examination results.
WAEC also introduced a new portal that enables candidates to generate their e-PINs directly for result checking, simplifying the entire process.
According to the council, candidates can access their results within 12 hours through the official result portal, while hard-copy certificates will be available within 90 days.
2026 WASSCE Performance
WAEC disclosed that 1,200,514 candidates, representing 61.54%, obtained credits in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
Dr. Dangut noted that this represents a 1.42 percentage-point decline compared to the 2025 examination.
A total of 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools registered for the examination, which was conducted across Nigeria, the Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea.
Out of the registered candidates, 1,950,726 sat for the examination.
The council further revealed that 1,687,378 candidates (86.50%) obtained credits in at least five subjects, with or without English Language and Mathematics.
Among those who achieved five credits, including English and Mathematics:
- 558,883 were male.
- 641,631 were female.
Overall, 953,459 males and 997,267 females participated in the examination.
Result Processing
WAEC stated that 1,834,695 candidates (94.05%) have had their results fully processed and released.
The results of 116,031 candidates (5.95%) are still being processed.
Candidates With Special Needs
The council disclosed that 1,213 candidates with special needs registered for the examination, comprising:
- 137 visually impaired candidates.
- 491 candidates with hearing impairment.
- 55 spastic and mentally challenged candidates.
- 41 physically challenged candidates.
Examination Malpractice
WAEC withheld the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59%, over various cases of examination malpractice. The figure is lower than the 9.7% recorded in 2025.
Dr. Dangut identified the increasing use of mobile phones in examination halls, despite existing bans, and organised cheating in some schools as persistent challenges….See
He added that supervisors and invigilators found aiding examination malpractice have been apprehended and will face disciplinary action through their respective State Ministries of Education.
New Measures Introduced
The Head of the National Office noted that the 2026 examination marked the second Computer-Based WASSCE conducted for school candidates and the third and final results briefing he would deliver in his current position.
He disclosed that WAEC has introduced additional innovations to strengthen the examination process, including:
- The Digital Examiner Mark System (DEMS) to speed up script marking.
- Serialised question papers to curb examination malpractice.
- A new e-PIN generation portal for easier access to results.
WAEC also announced that registration for the 2026 WASSCE for Private Candidates (Second Series) is currently ongoing at a registration fee of ₦37,500, while walk-in candidates are also permitted to register….see more