Ghana Records Over 500,000 Candidates For WASSCE 2026

WRITTEN BY JOSHUA NARH 

More than 500,000 final-year Senior High School students across Ghana on Wednesday,  May 13, 2026, began the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), with candidates sitting for the Oral English paper nationwide.

The examination, organised by the West African Examinations Council, marks the official start of this year’s final secondary school examination for students seeking admission into tertiary institutions and other professional programmes.

According to figures released by WAEC, a total of 509,862 candidates are participating in this year’s examination. The number includes 225,274 male candidates and 284,588 female candidates from public and private Senior High Schools across the country.

WAEC says the 2026 examination also marks Ghana’s complete return to the traditional May-June WASSCE calendar used across West Africa after years of academic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although practical examinations and project work for some subjects, including Visual Arts and Home Economics, had started earlier, Wednesday’s Oral English paper officially opened the main phase of the nationwide examination.

Candidates were seen arriving early, many revising notes and engaging in last-minute discussions before entering the examination halls.

Education authorities and invigilators were also deployed across centers to supervise the conduct of the examinations and ensure compliance with examination regulations.

WAEC says special monitoring teams have been assigned to various regions as part of efforts to reduce examination malpractice and maintain the integrity of the examinations.

The Ashanti Region recorded the highest number of registered candidates for this year’s WASSCE, followed by the Eastern and Central regions.

Officials of the examination body have urged candidates to avoid any form of malpractice and focus on writing the examinations independently.

The 2026 WASSCE is expected to continue over the coming weeks with candidates writing core and elective subjects across centers nationwide.