The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has cancelled the results of 601 candidates who sat the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) after confirming their involvement in examination malpractice.

The sanctions follow investigations into cases of irregularities detected during the conduct of the examination and the marking of scripts.

In a press statement signed by Head of Public Affairs John K. Kapi on Wednesday, WAEC said the 37th Meeting of the Final Awards and Examiners’ Appointment Committee for the BECE, held on July 21, approved the cancellation of the subject results of 496 candidates and the cancellation of the entire results of 105 candidates.

The Council also withheld the subject results for 119 candidates and the full results for 48 others pending further action.

In addition, WAEC said the subject results of 2,722 candidates from 229 schools have been withheld for further scrutiny.

According to the Council, the withheld results “may be cancelled or released based on the outcome of investigations by August 31, 2026.”

Candidates whose results have been cancelled or withheld have been directed to visit the WAEC irregularities portal to check the reasons for the sanctions and, in the case of withheld results, receive information on the next course of action. Heads of schools and proprietors can also use their results listing logins to verify the status of affected candidates.

The Council announced that it has released the provisional results for School Candidates who sat the 2026 BECE.

It said the results will be dispatched to schools through the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Directors of Education. Candidates who wish to check their results online can also access them on WAEC’s official website.

A total of 620,243 candidates, comprising 304,415 males and 315,828 females from 20,789 schools, registered for the examination, which was conducted at 2,237 centres across the country.

The figure included 136 candidates with visual impairment, 282 candidates with hearing assessment needs and 510 candidates who required other test accommodations. WAEC said 3,601 registered candidates were absent from the examination.

The Council also cautioned candidates and the general public against fraudsters who claim to be able to upgrade examination results for a fee.

It stressed that “WAEC results are secured and can be authenticated.”

WAEC expressed appreciation to the Ministry of Education, the Ghana Education Service, security agencies, heads of schools, supervisors, invigilators, examiners and all stakeholders for supporting the successful conduct of the examination and the release of the results.