The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has released the provisional results for the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for Private Candidates (First Series), recording high failure rates in core subjects, particularly Core Mathematics and Integrated Science.
A total of 23,410 candidates sat for the examination, comprising 9,980 males and 13,430 females. However, 746 registered candidates were absent.
According to WAEC’s Head of Public Affairs, John Kapi, candidates can now access their results online via the council’s official portal.
Performance in the core subjects showed mixed outcomes. Social Studies recorded the highest success rate with 8,131 candidates, representing 75.10%, obtaining grades A1 to C6.
English Language followed with 6,486 candidates (55.94%) achieving grades A1 to C6.
Core Mathematics saw 6,675 candidates (37.84%) passing with A1 to C6, while Integrated Science had the lowest pass rate with only 3,679 candidates (28.13%) obtaining similar grades.
Despite some successes, failure rates remained a major concern. In English Language, 1,625 candidates (14.02%) scored D7, 1,604 (13.83%) obtained E8, and 1,879 (16.21%) had F9.
Core Mathematics recorded 1,926 candidates (10.92%) with D7, 2,103 (11.92%) with E8, and a worrying 6,936 candidates (39.32%) failing outright with F9.
Integrated Science also showed poor performance, with 1,743 candidates (13.33%) scoring D7, 2,413 obtaining E8, and 5,239 (40.06%) receiving F9.
Social Studies performed relatively better, with 660 candidates (6.10%) scoring D7, 533 (4.92%) E8, and 1,503 (13.88%) F9.
WAEC has withheld the subject results of 76 candidates and the entire results of 87 candidates pending investigations into alleged malpractice. Affected candidates have been advised to follow official procedures through the council’s irregularities portal.
The council has also cautioned the public to be wary of fraudsters promising to upgrade results, stressing that its systems are secure and all results are verifiable only through official channels.