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The National Examinations Council (NECO) has released the results of the 2025 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) for external candidates, with 71.63 per cent of them achieving five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics.

Announcing the results on Tuesday, the Registrar and Chief Executive of NECO, Danlami Wushishi, disclosed that a total of 96,979 candidates registered for the examination nationwide.

Of this number, 51,823 candidates, representing 53.43 per cent, were males, while 45,156 candidates, representing 46.56 per cent, were females.

According to him, 95,160 candidates eventually sat for the examination, comprising 50,785 males (53.36 per cent) and 44,375 females (46.63 per cent).

Wushishi stated that 93,425 candidates sat for the English Language examination, out of which 73,167 candidates, representing 78.32 per cent, obtained credit passes and above. He added that 93,330 candidates sat for Mathematics, with 85,256 candidates, representing 91.35 per cent, securing credit passes and above.

He revealed that 68,166 candidates, representing 71.63 per cent, obtained five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics. In addition, 82,082 candidates, representing 86.26 per cent, recorded five credits and above, irrespective of English Language and Mathematics.

NECO Registrar Danlami Wushishi and other officials during the announcement of the 2025 SSCE results for external students.

On examination malpractice, the NECO Registrar disclosed that 9,016 candidates were booked for various forms of malpractice, compared to 6,160 cases recorded in 2024, indicating an increase of 31.7 per cent.

He also announced that some supervisors and centres were sanctioned for their involvement in malpractice.

According to him, two supervisors from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and one each from Kano and Lagos States were recommended for appropriate sanctions.

Furthermore, four examination centres—two in Niger State, and one each in Yobe and Lagos States—were found culpable of whole-centre malpractice and have been recommended for de-recognition.
The NECO chief reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to maintaining the integrity and credibility of its examinations and warned stakeholders against engaging in practices that undermine the examination process.

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The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has temporarily suspended the selection of examination towns for candidates registering for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Ekiti State.

The board announced the decision in a statement issued on Tuesday in Abuja by its spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin. According to Benjamin, the suspension is part of efforts to restructure examination towns in the state to ensure centres are closer to candidates and to ease transportation challenges on examination days.

He explained that although candidates are normally allowed to choose examination towns nearest to them, the 2026 UTME registration began before certain structural issues were discovered in the configuration of Ekiti’s examination towns.

“These anomalies required urgent adjustments in the interest of candidates,” he said, adding that this made it necessary to temporarily halt the selection of exam towns in the state.

As a result, candidates registering in Ekiti will be unable to select any examination town in the state while the restructuring exercise is ongoing. Benjamin assured that the process would be concluded shortly.

JAMB also apologised for any inconvenience the development may cause candidates affected during the ongoing registration.

“The board regrets any inconvenience this temporary measure may cause. As part of our standard practice, JAMB continuously monitors its operations and swiftly addresses challenges reported by candidates,” the statement read.

Benjamin reaffirmed the board’s commitment to improving its processes and ensuring that all candidates are treated with dignity and respect throughout the examination and registration process.

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The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has revealed that it identified 15,000 candidates who forged admission letters to qualify for participation in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

This was revealed by the agency’s registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, on Monday at the 2025 Batch C pre-mobilisation workshop in Abuja.

Oloyede confirmed that those involved are being prosecuted for alleged forgery, disclosing that 17 Deputy Vice-Chancellors, several Deputy Registrars, and four JAMB staff are currently in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over similar allegations.

“One day I ran to your predecessor because I couldn’t believe that 15,000 candidates forged admission letters,” Oloyede said.

“As I speak with you, some deputy registrars are being tried by ICPC. Some deputy vice-chancellors, not less than 17, including four JAMB staff, are in prison custody. We took them to ICPC.

“Those who want to go to jail should do so knowingly, not by accident. I want to advise you: follow the rules and you will have less problems. I suggest you follow the right path and you will see that most of the problems that are self-created by you will be eliminated.”
NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, emphasised the need to safeguard the credibility of the mobilisation process, noting that the organisation continues to face challenges from forged credentials, multiple registrations, and identity theft by unqualified individuals.

We all know that mobilising eligible Nigerian graduates for national service remains central to the NYSC’s mandate. As a matter of fact, mobilisation is the gateway to the service year and a vital link in preparing young Nigerian graduates for national integration and development. This key aspect of our operations can therefore not be allowed to suffer disrepute,” Nafiu said.

“Over the years, NYSC has earned public confidence for its transparent mobilisation process. We were able to do this in the analogue era and managed to transition that confidence to the digital era. For about 11 years now, we have continued to build a digital databank, and our mobilisation process is today almost fully digitised.”

The DG highlighted that the adoption of the NYSC Integrated System (NIS) in 2014 improved operational efficiency but also increased cyber threats.

“We have strengthened our digital defences and continue to invest in protecting the Scheme’s online assets,” he said, adding that activities of unapproved study centres and ‘degree mills’ remain a major concern.

Some of them operate under dubious affiliations with accredited institutions. Let me emphasise that the NYSC will continue to apply sanctions wherever such unethical practices are discovered. Low Data Management Capacity. Some officers handling mobilisation data still need to improve their digital literacy. Effective data validation and system management require continuous training and retraining.”

Director of Corps Mobilisation, Rachel Idaewor, commended the progress made in recent years due to innovative strategies and improved collaboration, but warned that challenges around data integrity persist.

“The fraudulent uploading of unqualified persons continues to affect the credibility of our mobilisation process negatively,” she said.

The integrity of our data is not just a technical challenge; it has far-reaching implications for the personal and professional futures of our youth. Accurate, reliable data forms the backbone of any successful operational strategy, enabling us to effectively mobilise our youth for national service.”

The workshop called on all stakeholders to address these challenges and uphold transparency and accountability in the mobilisation process.