BECE 2026 set to begin May 4 as GES warns against exam malpractice
All is set for the conduct of the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), which begins on Monday, May 4, and ends on May 11, 2026, the Ghana Education Service (GES) has announced.
The Director-General of the GES, Prof Ernest Kofi Davis, disclosed this at a media briefing in Accra, noting that 620,141 candidates from 20,395 schools are expected to sit for the examination nationwide. The figure, he said, represents an increase of about 2.7 per cent compared to last year, with the candidates comprising 304,349 boys and 315,792 girls.
Each candidate is expected to write 11 subjects during the examination period.
Massive logistics and security deployment
Prof Davis assured the public that the GES, in collaboration with the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and other stakeholders, had put in place all necessary arrangements to ensure a smooth and credible exercise.
According to him, the examination will be conducted in 2,303 centres across the country, supervised by 2,303 supervisors, supported by 2,070 assistant supervisors and 21,791 invigilators.
“These figures demonstrate the resolve to ensure that the conduct of the examination is credible.
“All examination materials and relevant logistics needed to ensure the successful conduct of examinations are in place.
“WAEC and GES are collaborating with the security agencies to ensure law and order at the various examination centres,” Prof Davis gave the assurance.
Warning on examination malpractice
The GES Director-General expressed concern that examination malpractice continues to pose a major challenge to the credibility of assessments in the country.
He warned that such practices distort academic evaluation and undermine education policy formulation.
“At the end of the day, the results of the student who cheated in the examination will never reflect the student's true academic capability.
“This often leads to wrong judgment of learning outcomes in the country and has the tendency to affect formulation of education policy in our country,” Prof Davis stated.
No room for ‘Apo’ or external assistance
Prof Davis urged candidates to prepare adequately and remain confident, stressing that examination questions would be drawn strictly from the syllabus.
“There is no need for students to panic or fear or be anxious because the questions will definitely come from the syllabus or the curriculum. The questions will, therefore, be within their experience.”
He also issued a strong warning against cheating, popularly referred to as ‘apo’, insisting that strict measures had been put in place to prevent it.
“We will do everything possible to ensure that students don't get ‘apo’,” he said.
Strict sanctions for supervisors and invigilators
The GES boss cautioned supervisors and invigilators to uphold professionalism, warning that anyone found aiding malpractice would face severe sanctions.
“I wish to remind all supervisors and regional directors of education that all teachers and supervisors, who were linked to examination malpractice last year and are being processed for sanctions are banned from the examination centres. They are not expected to have anything to do with the examinations,” he stressed.
Stakeholder collaboration and public support
Prof Davis called on teachers, parents, school authorities, traditional leaders, security agencies and the media to support efforts to ensure a credible examination process.
He further encouraged the public to report any suspected malpractice to WAEC or GES, adding that dedicated hotlines would soon be made available for that purpose.
