The Federal Government has ordered the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) to fully transition to Computer-Based Testing (CBT) for all their examinations by 2026.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, announced the directive on Monday during an inspection of the ongoing examination exercise in Bwari, Abuja, alongside officials of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
Speaking to journalists, Alausa disclosed that both examination bodies would begin administering objective papers through CBT starting from November this year, with a complete shift to CBT for both objective and essay components by May/June 2026.
“If JAMB can successfully conduct CBT exams for more than 2.2 million candidates, WAEC and NECO can do the same,” he said.
“We are going to get WAEC and NECO to also start their objective exam on CBT. By 2026 exams which will come up in May/June, both the objectives and the essay will be fully on CBT. That is how we can eliminate exam malpractices.
Alausa further revealed that a committee is currently reviewing examination standards across the country and is expected to submit its recommendations next month.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that over two million candidates are participating in the ongoing examination across more than 800 centres nationwide.
Meanwhile, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, addressed concerns about the early commencement of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). He explained that while the exams officially begin at 8:00 a.m., candidates are required to arrive as early as 6:30 a.m. for accreditation and necessary screening procedures.
“We have always started our exams at 8 o’clock. The first session is 8 o’clock, the second session is 10:30, the third session is 1 p.m., and the fourth session is 3:30 p.m.,” Oloyede clarified.
He also dismissed complaints from candidates about being posted to centres they did not select, stating that thorough investigations had revealed no such cases.
