Deal with WASSCE exam malpractices as 2025 WASSCE kicks off – LEADIF to WAEC

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) is facing a robust challenge to its anti-malpractice policies, as a prominent non-governmental organization, LEAD Impact Foundation (LEAD IF), today demanded a policy of “radical transparency,” insisting the council must publicly “name and shame” all individuals and institutions involved in cheating.

The call comes just hours before the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) is set to begin nationwide on August 5.

This call from LEAD IF lands amidst long-standing public concerns over the integrity of the WASSCE, which has been plagued by recurrent reports of question leakages and sophisticated cheating rings in recent years.

In a press statement, the foundation contended that the credibility of Ghana’s most critical secondary school certificate is at risk. “The rampant and often brazen examination malpractices that have plagued the WASSCE in recent years threaten to render the certificate worthless, and the time for rhetoric is over,” the statement asserted.

A Demand for ‘Zero Tolerance’

Arguing that internal sanctions have failed to curb the menace, LEAD IF is championing a new, aggressive approach. The foundation’s core demand is for WAEC to expose any and all parties complicit in exam fraud.

The call for public accountability specifically targets:

• Internal WAEC Staff: Employees of the Council found to be part of the “criminal enterprise.”
• External Officials: Temporary staff like invigilators, supervisors, and depot-keepers who facilitate cheating.
• Institutions: Secondary schools, both public and private, that are identified as habitual “cheating centres.”
• School Leadership: Headmasters and teachers who collude in undermining the examination’s integrity.

LEAD IF insists that these individuals should not only be publicly identified and blacklisted but also handed over for legal prosecution to serve as a powerful deterrent.

The foundation warned of dire consequences if decisive action is not taken. They argued that continued inaction would erode the value of the WASSCE on the global stage and, more damagingly, produce “a generation of students with excellent grades but hollow minds.”

The statement, co-signed by founders Wisdom Hammond and Humphrey Adjei, also appealed to the Ministry of Education, the Ghana Education Service, and national security agencies to support the call and safeguard the future of Ghana’s youth.

LEAD Impact Foundation has served notice that it will be closely monitoring the conduct of the 2025 WASSCE.