WAEC, NECO to adopt CBT by 2026

The Federal Government has instructed the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) to fully adopt Computer-Based Testing (CBT) for all examinations by 2026.

Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, made this announcement during an inspection of the ongoing examinations conducted in partnership with JAMB officials in Bwari on Monday.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), over two million candidates are participating in the current examinations across more than 800 centres nationwide.

Dr. Alausa explained that WAEC and NECO would begin using CBT for objective questions starting this November, with plans to extend the CBT system to both objective and essay sections by May/June 2026.

“If JAMB can successfully administer CBT exams to over 2.2 million candidates, WAEC and NECO can also achieve this,” Alausa said.

“We will ensure that by 2026, all examinations, both objectives and essays, are fully conducted through CBT. This shift will help curb examination malpractice significantly.”

He further revealed that a committee is currently reviewing examination standards across the country, with a report expected by next month.

Meanwhile, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, speaking about the exam schedules, clarified that UTME exams traditionally begin at 8:00 a.m., not earlier.

He said candidates were asked to arrive at 6:30 a.m. for accreditation purposes before the exams commenced.

“We have always scheduled our exams to start at 8:00 a.m., followed by sessions at 10:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 3:30 p.m.,” Oloyede noted, dismissing complaints about early arrival times.

Prof. Oloyede also refuted claims that candidates were posted to centres they did not select, stating that investigations found no such instances.

He confirmed that over 1.6 million candidates had completed their exams, with about 50,000 still expected to write theirs.

Additionally, he disclosed that more than 40 candidates had been arrested for various examination malpractices, including impersonation and attempting to smuggle questions out using hidden cameras.

He also noted that among the registered candidates, over 41,000 were underage.