All is set for the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) to conduct this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), starting on Monday, July 8.
The government has allocated GH¢55.9 million to WAEC to ensure the smooth execution of the examination.
A total of 570,461 candidates, including both school and private candidates, will participate in the exams.
Of the school candidates, 569,095 pupils, consisting of 282,648 males and 386,447 females, will take the examination. Additionally, 1,366 private candidates, comprising 735 males and 631 females, have been registered.
John K. Kapi, WAEC’s Head of Public Affairs, announced at a media briefing in Accra that candidates from 19,506 schools will sit for the exams at 2,123 centres nationwide.
The examination schedule starts with English Language on July 8 and concludes with Arabic on July 15.
To ensure a seamless process, WAEC has engaged 2,123 supervisors, 1,889 assistant supervisors, and 19,973 invigilators.
School candidates will be examined based on the new Common Core Curriculum, while private candidates will follow the old syllabus.
Mr. Kapi highlighted that WAEC has organized sensitization programs on the examination rules and inspected all storage depots for confidential materials to meet security standards. Also, examination stationery has been distributed to district education offices.
WAEC has also made provisions for candidates with special educational needs, including braille papers for visually impaired candidates and large print papers for those with low vision.
Additional time allowances have been provided for hearing-impaired candidates and those with cerebral palsy or autism spectrum disorders.
Mr. Kapi urged all stakeholders to adhere strictly to the examination rules to avoid any irregularities, emphasizing that parents must ensure their children do not bring mobile phones to the examination centers and that invigilators and supervisors prevent cheating and other malfeasance.
