WAEC increases exam depots to strengthen WASSCE security nationwide
By Rebecca Okine
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has increased its examination depots nationwide from 169 to 176 to improve the ongoing 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
The move, according to the Head of the National Office, Dr Rosemond Wilson, aims to shorten distances between depots and examination centres, particularly in remote areas, and to safeguard the integrity of examination materials.
“All depots have been sufficiently fortified to protect the security of question papers. Before the exams begin, senior officers of the council, together with security personnel, inspected all depots to ensure they meet the required standards,” Dr Wilson said in an interview with the media.
In line with WAEC’s security protocols, she disclosed that question papers had already been printed, packed, and will be dispatched to the fortified depots in readiness for the examinations.
Dispatches are carried out in three or four batches during the examination period, depending on the timetable.
The practical session of this year’s WASSCE for School Candidates (WASSCE-SC) began smoothly on 5 August 2025 in senior high and technical schools nationwide.
The written papers are scheduled to run from 20 August to 19 September 2025.
This year, 461,640 candidates comprising 207,381 males and 254,259 females are expected to sit for the examination at approximately 701 centres across the country.
A total of 65 subjects will be examined, with each candidate writing an average of eight papers.
Reaffirming WAEC’s commitment to credible assessments, Dr Wilson said the council had conducted nationwide briefing sessions for supervisors and invigilators, emphasising the need for extra vigilance to prevent examination malpractices.
On alleged cheating schemes, Dr Wilson revealed that WAEC had intelligence suggesting that some school heads and teachers planned to aid candidates in cheating by charging between GHS500 and GHS650 per student.
These schools, she alleged, also intended to assign subject teachers to invigilate their own papers, which is a direct violation of examination regulations.
“We are monitoring closely all these allegations,” she stated, assuring the public that the council is committed to addressing any malpractice.
Dr Wilson urged candidates to strictly follow examination rules, including arriving at centres early and being seated at least 30 minutes before the start of each paper.
She reminded them that “achieving excellence through honest means is possible” and wished them success in the upcoming examinations.
WAEC has maintained that all security and administrative measures are in place to deliver a credible examination process this year.
