The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has expressed significant concern over emerging schemes by various institutions aimed at facilitating mass cheating during this year’s West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for school candidates.
According to WAEC, intelligence reports indicate several alarming trends:
1. Candidates in certain regions are being charged between Gh¢200.00 and Gh¢500.00 for assistance from invigilators.
2. Some supervisors are planning to assign teachers to invigilate the subjects they teach.
3. Certain schools have registered individuals who are not legitimate students of their institutions.
“The Council wishes to caution all Heads of School, Supervisors, and Invigilators to desist from this practice as all those involved will be dealt with according to the rules and regulations of the examination. The Council will not hesitate to nullify the entries of such candidates and those who manage to sneak in will have their entire results cancelled if found out. In addition, examination centres that do not comply with the rules governing the examination will be relocated to WAEC-designated centres,” the statement read.
WAEC also appealed to all stakeholders, particularly supervisors and invigilators, to support efforts to maintain the examination’s integrity.
“Candidates are advised to adhere to the rules and regulations of the examination and be wary of the activities of rogue website operators, whose primary duty is to circulate fake questions and lure candidates into subscribing to these questions, thereby taking their focus off their books. The Council wishes all candidates success in their papers and reminds them that they can pass their examination without cheating,” the statement added.
The administration of practical and theory papers for the 2024 WASSCE commenced on Monday, August 19, 2024, following the completion of the Visual Art Project work between August 5 and 16, 2024. The examination is scheduled to conclude on Friday, September 20, 2024.
A total of 460,611 candidates—comprising 212,954 males and 247,657 females from 1,003 schools—have registered for the examination. This represents a 2.66% increase compared to the 2023 entry figure of 448,674. The examination is being conducted across 1,000 centres nationwide.
In its statement, WAEC emphasized, “The Council wishes to assure all stakeholders and members of the public that all the necessary test security measures have been put in place to ensure that the examination is conducted successfully.”
