The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has announced that the 2025 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) for both school and private candidates will be held from Wednesday, 11 June to Wednesday, 18 June 2025.

In a statement issued by the Council on Monday, June 9, WAEC disclosed that a total of 603,328 candidates, made up of 297,250 males and 306,078 females from 20,395 participating schools, have registered for this year’s school examination. “The number of candidates that registered for this year's BECE (SC) is 5.99% higher than the 2024 entry figure of 569,236,” WAEC stated.

The Council also reported that 1,661 private candidates, comprising 858 males and 803 females, will sit the exam this year. “This year's figure is 19.49% higher than the 2024 entry figure of 1,390,” the statement added.

According to WAEC, the examination for school candidates will take place at 2,237 centres across the country, while fifteen centres, mainly in the regional capitals, will be used for the BECE for private candidates. As with the 2024 examination, school candidates and some private candidates will be examined on the core curriculum, while other private candidates will be examined on the old syllabus.

WAEC made it clear that “this will be the last time private candidates will be examined on the old syllabus.”

The Council assured the public that provisions have been made for candidates with special educational needs. “Heads of school, parents and guardians should rest assured that adequate provision has been made to ensure that no child is left behind as far as the examination is concerned,” WAEC said.

WAEC also reminded all stakeholders about the revised rules and regulations for handling examination irregularities, which have been in force since 2023. These include rules on “having inscriptions on any part of the body or clothing,” “posting live questions on the internet,” “refusal to grant timely access into the school premises,” “misconduct of examination officials,” and “multiple registration of candidates in both public and private schools.”

The Council added that “the revised rules are available on the Council’s website and Heads of school, supervisors and invigilators should ensure that candidates adhere to these new rules.”

The Council called on all stakeholders to ensure a peaceful and orderly examination environment.

“The Council calls on all and sundry especially stakeholders to ensure that sanity prevails at all the examination centres,” the statement said.

WAEC concluded by wishing candidates well, urging them to follow the rules: “While we wish all the candidates success in their examination, we wish to admonish them to adhere strictly to the rules governing the examination. Any attempt to breach any of these will have dire consequences on the candidates.”