Minister of Education Tunji Alausa
Federal Government has suspended the proposed review of registration fees for the 2027 West African Senior School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), bowing to widespread public concerns and opting for extensive consultations with stakeholders.
The Federal Ministry of Education announced on Monday that it had withdrawn its June 18, 2026 letter communicating the proposed fee adjustment, pending a comprehensive review of the policy.
The ministry, in a statement signed by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Boriowo Folasade, said the decision followed reactions from Nigerians over the planned increase, adding that it had taken note of the public’s concerns and constructive feedback on the matter.
The proposed policy, announced on June 18, had approved a new uniform registration fee of N50,000 for candidates sitting the Senior School Certificate Examinations (SSCE) conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO), with implementation scheduled to begin from the 2027 examination cycle.
The proposal represented an increase of about 82 per cent from the current registration fee of N27,500 per candidate.
According to the ministry, the earlier approval followed deliberations at a meeting between the Minister of Education and representatives of examination bodies held on March 31, 2026, where the rising cost of conducting national examinations was discussed. The minister had subsequently directed both WAEC and NECO to adopt a uniform registration fee for their Senior School Certificate Examinations.
At the time, the ministry stated:
“You may recall that at a meeting of examination bodies held with the honourable minister of education on 31 March, 2026, where the need for upward review of examination fees was discussed, the honourable minister directed that WAEC and NECO should adopt a uniform fee for the conduct of WAEC and NECO SSCE.”
It further announced: “Consequently, I am directed to convey the honourable minister of education’s approval of the sum of fifty thousand naira (N50,000.00) only, as the new examination fee per candidate, with effect from NECO SSCE (Internal), 2027.”
However, the ministry has now put the policy on hold.
Explaining the reason for the proposed increase, the ministry said the review was initially driven by the country’s prevailing economic realities and the escalating cost of organising credible national examinations.
It noted that examination registration fees had remained largely unchanged for several years despite rising operational expenses, including logistics, security, printing of examination materials, deployment of technology, quality assurance and other critical services required to preserve the integrity of public examinations.
The ministry stressed that while the government recognises the financial pressures facing examination bodies, it is equally committed to ensuring that access to education remains affordable for Nigerian students.
It added that extensive consultations would now be held with key stakeholders before any final decision is taken on a possible review of the examination registration fees.
