The Federal Government has announced fresh measures aimed at eliminating examination malpractice in the 2026 examinations and beyond, particularly in the conduct of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO).
The measures form part of ongoing reforms to strengthen credibility, transparency and public confidence in Nigeria’s assessment system.
In a statement issued by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Federal Ministry of Education, Boriowo Folasade, the disclosure was made by the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, CON, alongside the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Said Ahmed.
According to the statement, the ministry is intensifying oversight and deploying targeted strategies to safeguard the integrity of national examinations.
One of the key measures is the introduction of enhanced question randomisation and serialisation. Although all candidates will answer the same questions, the sequence and arrangement will differ for each candidate, ensuring that every student sits for a unique version of the examination and significantly reducing opportunities for collusion.
The ministry also reaffirmed its strict policy prohibiting the transfer of candidates at the Senior Secondary School Three (SS3) level. The directive, already communicated through an official circular, will be rigorously enforced to curb last-minute school changes often linked to examination malpractice.
To further promote transparency, new national Continuous Assessment (CA) guidelines have been developed for immediate implementation. Examination bodies, including WAEC, NECO and the National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies (NBAIS), are required to strictly adhere to standardised submission timelines for each academic term.
Under the guidelines, First Term CA must be submitted in January, Second Term in April, and Third Term in August.
The ministers assured stakeholders that examination administration will be carried out under strengthened supervision and in close coordination with relevant examination bodies to ensure full compliance with established guidelines and ethical standards.
Discover more from Rootedscope Media
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
