WAEC leading Nigeria’s efforts to eliminate exam fraud, says Tunji Alausa

Tunji Alausa says Nigeria is working earnestly to eliminate examination fraud.

The education minister also said the federal government plans to fully transition to computer-based test examinations for the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and other exam bodies by 2026.

Alausa monitored the conduct of WAEC’s CBT examinations in Abuja on Wednesday.

He expressed optimism about Nigeria’s capacity to modernise its examination system and reduce widespread malpractice through digital innovation.

Commending WAEC’s initiative, the minister described the shift from traditional pen-and-paper exams to CBT as a historic and crucial step toward fairness and educational integrity.

“We are working very hard to eliminate fraud in our exam system, and WAEC is taking the lead,” he said.

Highlighting the advantages of CBT, Alausa noted that the system simplified the exam process while significantly curbing cheating.

“We now have clear evidence that when exams are done using technology, the level of fraud is minimised to almost zero,” he stated.

He further lauded WAEC’s internal safeguards, explaining that the CBT system was operated via a secured local area network, making it “literally impossible” to hack.

Alausa said all WAEC’s multiple-choice exams will be conducted using CBT by November 2025.

He added that essay questions and NECO examinations would follow suit by 2026.

On infrastructure and logistics, particularly in remote areas, Alausa acknowledged the challenges but assured that scalable solutions are in progress.

“Are we going to be ready to provide every single needed infrastructure by November? No. But as we move into the future, we will be ready. We have to challenge ourselves as a government,” he said.

Alausa also addressed concerns over the logistics of conducting multiple exams.

“In WAEC, the average student takes about eight to nine papers. They do it over several days. Those are the logistics we, as administrators, have to work through, and we already are,” he explained.

The ongoing WAEC Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) began on April 24 and is scheduled to conclude on June 20, 2025.

A total of 1,973,253 candidates from 23,554 schools are participating.

Of this number, 979,228 are male, accounting for 49.63 per cent.

A total of 994,025 candidates are female, making up 50.37 per cent.