The government has announced plans to give 3,372 candidates whose 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results are unavailable a second opportunity to resit the examination before they can progress to the next stage of their education.

In a press briefing on Monday, September 7, the Deputy Education Minister, Dr Clement Apaak, announced the arrangement as the government outlined the pathways available to candidates who did not meet the requirements for automatic placement into senior high school.

According to Dr Apaak, a total of 57,259 candidates fall into the category of students whose examination outcomes did not meet the requirements for automatic placement.

He explained that the figure includes candidates who did not sit the examination as well as those who recorded very low scores in English Language and Mathematics.

“The data show that 57,259 candidates fall within this category,” Dr Apaak said.

“Of these, 3,372 did not sit for the exams, 35,382 obtained a score of 9 in either English Language or Mathematics, and 18,505 obtained a score of 9 in both English Language and Mathematics.”

Dr Apaak said the government had decided to create an additional opportunity for candidates who did not receive results, rather than leave them without a clear route to continue their education.

He said the 3,372 candidates would not be considered for placement at this stage.

“However, the 3,372 candidates without results will not be placed at this stage,” he said.

“These candidates will be given a second opportunity to resit the examination, after which they can progress along the appropriate educational pathway.”

The arrangement means the affected candidates will have to take the examination again before they can proceed through the normal placement process.

The Deputy Minister said the decision formed part of the government's broader effort to ensure that young people who encounter difficulties during the placement process are given an opportunity to continue their education.

“Government has taken a deliberate decision to ensure that these young people are provided with an appropriate pathway to continue their education,” he said.

While the 3,372 candidates without results will have to wait for the resit opportunity, Dr Apaak said candidates who obtained a score of 9 in English Language or Mathematics, or in both subjects, would still have an opportunity to secure placement.

He said these candidates would be allowed to use the self-placement system to choose schools and programmes with available vacancies.

“Accordingly, candidates who obtained a score of 9 in either English Language or Mathematics, or in both subjects, will be allowed to access the self-placement system and select from schools and programmes with available vacancies,” he said.

He urged the affected candidates and their parents to make use of the opportunity rather than assume that they had been excluded from the placement process.

“We therefore encourage these candidates and their parents not to lose hope."

“They should take advantage of the self-placement opportunity and select from the options available to them,” Dr Apaak said.

The government also said the self-placement portal is now live, providing another route for candidates who were not matched with their preferred schools during the automatic placement exercise.

According to Dr Apaak, the portal is available both to candidates who could not be automatically matched with their original choices and to those who obtained a score of 9 in English Language and/or Mathematics and are eligible to select from schools with vacancies.

The government is therefore asking eligible candidates and their parents to check the available options and make their selections through the self-placement system.

Dr Apaak said the measures were intended to strike a balance between giving candidates another opportunity and protecting the credibility of the examination and placement systems.

“Our objective is to ensure that no young person is unnecessarily left behind while maintaining the integrity of the placement and examination systems,” he said.