In 2025, Nigeria’s major examination bodies the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) were hit by critical technical glitches that triggered widespread confusion and public outcry. The glitches affected thousands of candidates, with scrambled and incorrect results initially released, undermining confidence in these key academic assessments.
JAMB’s issue was traced to a software patch error on servers for Lagos and South-East zones, impacting approximately 379,997 candidates. This led to resits for affected students and drew sharp criticism. JAMB Registrar Is-haq Oloyede attributed the problem to a technical omission but dismissed conspiracy theories targeting certain regions. Nonetheless, the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education suggested that human error played a significant role.
Similarly, WAEC temporarily withdrew its 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results after discovering glitches linked to a new paper serialisation security feature implemented to curb malpractice in subjects like Mathematics, English, Biology, and Economics. WAEC quickly acted to suspend the results portal, reviewed the results, and reinstated updated scores, reassuring the public of its commitment to transparency and fairness.
Despite official responses and corrective measures, stakeholders including parents, students, and education experts expressed concerns about the negative impact on students’ morale and the overall credibility of Nigeria’s examination systems. Calls for independent audits, systemic overhaul, and better quality assurance were made to prevent future occurrences.
The Federal Ministry of Education has praised the prompt actions taken and plans to phase in computer-based testing starting November 2026 to enhance the integrity of examinations, discourage malpractice, and restore trust.