Sierra Leone’s Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education, Conrad Sackey, has warned that school heads risk losing their jobs if they dishonestly register ineligible candidates for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
Speaking on Radio Democracy 98.1’s “Gud Mornin Salone” programme and later sharing the update on social media, Sackey disclosed that while 140,000 candidates have been cleared for this year’s WASSCE, about 55,000 names remain unverified.
According to him, 119,000 pupils sat the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) three years ago, yet schools uploaded 219,000 names for WASSCE this year. Of these, 74,000 could not initially be verified by the Ministry, raising concerns about attempts to bypass BECE requirements.
Following a joint review involving education stakeholders, including the Sierra Leone Teachers’ Union and the Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools, 19,000 additional candidates were cleared, but 55,000 remain unmatched.
The Minister said the government is willing to pay WASSCE fees for the unverified candidates if school authorities provide written confirmation that all listed candidates are eligible, not registered at multiple schools, and that measures are in place to reduce absenteeism.
He stressed that any breach of these conditions would result in the immediate termination of the responsible school leader.
Sackey also warned that absenteeism is placing a heavy financial burden on the government, noting that 25,000 candidates were absent in 2024 and 35,000 in 2025. He cautioned that if the trend continues, the number of excess candidates could reach 300,000 by 2028.
