The Abuakwa North Municipal Ghana Education Service (GES) has recorded a notable occurrence in this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), with a total of 10 students marked as absent and one candidate pregnant.

Mr Samson Akoto, Public Relations Officer of the Abuakwa North Municipal GES, said that of the ten absentees, five males and five females, only one female was known to be sick.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview, he said that the number of documented pregnant candidates this year was much lower compared to the seven recorded instances last year.

According to him, the introduction of numerous interventions by the municipality, such as KOICA for girls and sensitization on the effects of teenage pregnancies and abortion, contributed to the overall reduction in the number of pregnant candidates registered.

Mr Akoto indicated that the construction of a girls’ club assisted the municipality in recording an excellent outcome this year around pregnant teenagers taking the BECE.

He said that the municipality received a total of 1,636 BECE candidates this year, including 828 males and 808 females from 58 public and private schools across five centres.

Although no casualties or examination misconduct have been recorded so far, Mr. Akoto asked candidates to maintain their positive attitude until they finish their last exam on Friday.