The Nigerian government has said that Nigerian students may eventually sit for the General Certificate Examinations in November if it fails to reach an agreement with other member countries of the West African Examination Council (WAEC) on the appropriate time for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
The Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba, stated at the bi-weekly briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in Abuja on Thursday, that the National Office of WAEC in Nigeria cannot take a unilateral decision on shifting the date of the examination, adding that Nigeria had however presented her request to the council.
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“Unfortunately, WAEC cannot unilaterally move the exams but we have also worked out a negotiated timeline with the council on Nigerian peculiar subjects. These are subjects that are only held in Nigeria.”
The minister said that it would be good to work with WAEC for Nigeria to hold the examination with others, explaining that the government was also considering the possibility of prevailing on the council to move certain subjects that are peculiar to Nigeria to a future date.
Such subjects, according to the minister, Include Yoruba, Igbo and other Nigerian indigenous languages, adding that if this becomes impossible, the option left is for Nigerian students to sit the GCE in November. The GCE is organised by WAEC for private candidates.
“Government will work out a ‘domestication module’ that will enable us to take our peculiar subjects after we have done general (subjects). This will buy us the time we need for all of us to be at par with the rest of West Africa so that we can operate at the same time because the unanimity with which WAEC has always worked is still very important to us.”
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He explained that other member countries could also take examinations peculiar to them at some later dates, adding that this would allow all participating countries the needed time to write the general subjects at the same time if Nigeria is able to meet up with the WAEC timetable.
The Federal Government had earlier reversed itself on school resumption and conduct of WASSCE. It had earlier announced that this year’s WASSCE would start in August and end in September. However, it later said Nigeria would not participate in the regional examination. It stated that the decision not to reopen schools was to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
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It has also provided guidelines containing the requirements to be put in place before schools are reopened. The minister said that government would like to know what the states can provide ahead, adding that many states had come to say they were unable to meet up with that date and that this was why the minister ask WAEC to give Nigeria and the schools some time to meet up.
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