The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has released the provisional results for the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), revealing a troubling dip in performance across the core subjects and a spike in examination malpractice cases.
According to WAEC, a total of 461,736 candidates comprising 207,415 males and 254,321 females from 1,021 schools registered for the examination. This represents a marginal 0.24% increase over the 2024 figure of 460,611. Out of the total number, 5,821 candidates (1.26%) were absent from the exam,
After completing investigations into widespread irregularities, the Ghana Examinations Committee, at its 40th meeting on November 17, 2025, approved a series of sanctions.
- “Cancellation of Subject Results of 6,295 candidates for bringing foreign material like prepared notes, textbooks, and printed material into the examination halls.”
- “Cancellation of Entire Results of 653 candidates for possession of mobile phones in the examination halls.”
- Withholding of Subject Results of 908 candidates and Entire Results of 158 candidates for various suspected offences.
Furthermore, the subject results of candidates from 185 schools have been withheld for alleged collusion. WAEC says these cases remain under investigation but emphasized that it is “working around the clock to ensure that the withheld results… are published before the end of December 2025 depending on the outcome of investigations.”
The Council also revealed that 35 individuals, including 19 teachers, were found to have engaged in acts that compromised the integrity of the examination. Out of this number, 19 have already been arraigned and convicted, receiving fines or prison terms, while the remaining 16 individuals are expected to be presented before the courts soon.
WAEC added that beyond the court decisions, “the list of teachers will be presented to the Director General of the Ghana Education Service for further disciplinary action.”
Despite the challenges, WAEC commended institutions and individuals who contributed to the successful conduct of the 2025 examination.
“The Council expresses its sincerest gratitude to stakeholders especially the Ministry of Education, Ghana Education Service, the Security Agencies, Heads of School, Supervisors, Invigilators, Examiners and all who in diverse ways supported it in the successful conduct of the examination and release of results.”
The significant decline in performance coupled with rising cases of malpractice has sparked renewed conversations about discipline, supervision, and the broader state of Ghana’s education system.
As the country awaits the completion of investigations and the release of withheld results, stakeholders are urging greater reforms to uphold the credibility and integrity of national examinations.
