Exam malpractice national security threat - WAEC warns

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has expressed deep concern over coordinated cheating schemes, some reportedly involving entire schools in premeditated examination malpractice, saying the menace is becoming a national security threat. 

The council said such unethical acts, often facilitated by students, school authorities, and even trusted stakeholders, posed a serious threat to the credibility and integrity of the examination process.

Speaking at a regional stakeholders meeting in Cape Coast last Thursday, the Head of Humanities at WAEC, Daniel Nii Dodoo, described the trend as a threat to both educational integrity and national stability, calling for a unified front to combat it.

Mr Dodoo revealed that despite intensified measures, the problem had reached alarming levels.

Widespread examination malpractice undermines honest students, devalues our certificates, and may even lead to social unrest.

“This challenge goes beyond the classroom; it undermines our educational system, threatens national development and weakens our security framework.

We must treat it as the national crisis it has become,” he stressed.

He indicated that WAEC had recorded staggering levels of malpractice over the past five years.

Cancellation of results

In 2023 alone, he stated that over 587,000 subject results were withheld, and more than 59,000 results were cancelled outright.

Participants in the forum

The year before, he said, over 382,000 results were flagged for irregularities.

“These numbers are not just statistics; they represent a deep and dangerous erosion of academic integrity,” Mr Dodoo said.

Implications

He outlined a range of national security implications stemming from this crisis, including the production of underqualified graduates, infiltration of public institutions by unqualified personnel, a rise in youth disillusionment and the spread of extremist ideologies.

“If individuals can ascend to power or secure jobs through fraudulent means, we compromise the integrity of governance. This is not only a threat to the credibility of our education system but to democracy itself,” he added.

Mr Dodoo warned that Ghana's international reputation was also at risk, with increasing levels of malpractice potentially discouraging foreign investment and academic collaboration.

He expressed concern that some WAEC staff had faced threats and intimidation in the line of duty. 

WAEC under siege

“The examining body is under siege; those tasked with safeguarding our academic standards are being targeted. We must protect them if we are to protect the system,” he said.

Mr Dodoo called for a whole-of-society response, stressing that the fight against examination malpractice could not be left for WAEC alone.

“Government, parents, schools, religious institutions, traditional leaders, security agencies, and even students, all have a role to play,” he said.

Among those with critical roles, he cited the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS), school supervisors and teacher unions, who he said, must lead with integrity, and model ethical behaviour.

The media, he added, must continue to highlight the consequences of malpractice and hold institutions accountable.

“The media must not only report the scandals but help shape a national culture of integrity,” he urged.

He also urged religious leaders and the traditional authorities to use their platforms to promote honesty among young people.

“If we want students to reject cheating, they must hear it from every voice of moral authority,” he said.

Resource mobilisation

On resource mobilisation for WAEC, Mr Dodoo called on the Parliamentary Select Committee on Education to strengthen oversight, ensure timely funding for WAEC operations and support the implementation of stricter penalties for offenders.

He also appealed to the security agencies and the judiciary to take examination fraud seriously and pursue those who facilitate or profit from it.

“This is organised crime,” he stated bluntly. “It involves networks, coercion and corruption. It must be investigated and prosecuted accordingly.”

To counter the growing menace, he outlined a multi-pronged mitigation strategy, including strengthening regulatory frameworks with harsher sanctions; promoting ethical education in early schooling, leveraging technology, such as biometric verification and item randomisation, rewarding whistleblowers who report malpractice, and accrediting NGOs to help monitor examination centres.

“Our goal is to restore public confidence in examinations and ensure that every certificate issued in this country is backed by merit, not manipulation,” he stated.

The Head of Public Affairs at WAEC, John Kapi, revealed alarming tactics used by cheating syndicates, including answer projection, mobile device smuggling, impersonation, and even individuals hiding in ceilings during examinations.

These, he said, were not random acts but increasingly coordinated, with collaborators using money, external materials and syndicates to undermine the system.

Deepening crisis

The Central Regional Director of Education, Emmanuel Essuman, who chaired the meeting, said there was a deepening crisis of examination malpractice in the region, warning that the integrity of the country’s education system was at risk if urgent and collective action was not taken.

He described the current wave of examination-related misconduct as “a systemic issue involving multiple actors,” including some parents, teachers, invigilators, and even members of the security services.

Mr Essuman called for a shared commitment to safeguarding the integrity of examinations in the region.

“WASSCE and BECE are not just academic events; they are life-defining moments for our students,” he said.

Drawing from his own monitoring experiences across districts, Mr Essuman detailed how some parents and community members actively paid for leaked questions, commonly referred to as ‘apo’, from unscrupulous sources in a desperate bid to secure good grades for their children.

“Driven by anxiety over their children’s performance, some parents are resorting to unethical methods. In some cases, community members even set up illegal ‘adopt centres’ in remote areas, including cocoa forest zones, where organised cheating is facilitated,” he disclosed.

He said individuals had been seen fleeing into the bush upon the arrival of monitoring teams.

In other instances, students have been caught smuggling unauthorised materials into examination halls, aided by supervisors and invigilators, who had allegedly pre-arranged financial deals with school heads.

“I have witnessed students dressed as if going to war, with jackets and multiple hidden pockets, to smuggle in materials. In one shocking case, a school director was targeted and threatened for reporting malpractice. They even broke into his room and left knives on his bed, being a clear warning,” he said.

He lamented that despite the presence of security personnel at some centres, malpractice persists, with some officers allegedly complicit in the misconduct.

“This is not just a WAEC issue. It is our collective responsibility -- community leaders, directors, parents, and all of us -- to reinforce ethical standards and ensure that students succeed through honest effort,” he stressed.

Mr Essuman further emphasised the importance of professional conduct among examination officers and supervisors, adding that some invigilators demanded fees from schools and turned a blind eye to examination malpractice.