The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has bemoaned the delay in the release of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, citing financial challenges as the primary cause.
In an interview on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday, December 19, John Kapi, the Head of Public Affairs at WAEC, explained that the results remain unavailable due to unresolved financial obligations owed to technicians responsible for maintaining critical equipment needed for the examination process.
The results are not ready. We issued a statement earlier highlighting some of the challenges we are currently facing. Unfortunately, these challenges persist because we have not been able to secure the necessary funds to address them,” Kapi stated during the interview.
Central to the issue, according to Kapi, is the malfunctioning of specialised scanners essential for marking objective questions in the WASSCE.
These scanners, which play a vital role in the grading process, require urgent repairs. However, technicians tasked with repairing the equipment have suspended their services due to an outstanding debt of GH₵25 million owed to them by WAEC.
We needed to repair our scanners because we owe the technicians GH¢25 million and they have withdrawn their services until we make some financial commitments. Private schools pay their fees but the government pays for candidates in public schools, and so until the monies are paid, we are unable to release the results,” Kapi elaborated.
The Minority in Parliament took interest in the matter and demanded that the Finance and Education Ministers be summoned to the House to address the government’s indebtedness to WAEC.