Females dominate the roster as nearly 2 million students participate in this year's WASSCE exams.

Dr Amos Dangut, the Head of the Nigeria National Office of the West African Examinations Council, revealed that female candidates outnumber their male counterparts in the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination, with the figures disclosed during a press briefing at the council's national office in Yaba, Lagos on Monday.

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The 2026 WASSCE commenced on April 21 with practical papers and is scheduled to end on June 19, according to the council's announcement.

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A total of 1,001,072 female candidates, representing 51.08 per cent of the total enrolment, are participating in the examination, while 958,564 male candidates, representing 48.92 per cent, are also taking part.

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These numbers indicate a rise in female participation and a decline in the number of male candidates compared to the previous year, as noted by Dr Dangut.

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A total of 1,959,636 candidates from 24,207 schools have enrolled for the examination, with 958,564 candidates being male and 1,001,072 being female, reflecting an increase in female participation and a decline in male participation compared to last year.

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Candidates will sit for 37 subjects comprising 97 papers, with approximately 29,000 senior secondary school teachers nominated by Ministries of Education across the country participating as supervisors.

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The West African Examinations Council has assured candidates that results will be released 45 days after the conduct of the final paper, with certificates of successful candidates to be printed and issued to schools within 90 days after the release of results.

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Digital copies of certificates will also be accessible through the WAEC Digital Certificate platform, providing an additional means for candidates to access their certificates.

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The council introduced its maiden Computer-Based WASSCE for School Candidates in 2025, and this year, more schools have chosen the CB-WASSCE option due to its seamless nature and alignment with global best practices.

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The adoption of the computer-based mode is also in line with the recommendation of the Federal Ministry of Education, and some offshore schools in neighbouring countries using the WAEC syllabus have also adopted this mode for the 2026 examination.

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The council has continued the serialisation of examination papers to strengthen the integrity of the examination process and curb malpractice, ensuring that no two candidates have the same question sequence.

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This innovation upholds the academic and moral integrity of the National Policy on Education, and the council has further refined the system to enhance its efficiency this year.

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The examination is scheduled to last eight weeks and three days, as announced by the council.