The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has officially released the provisional results of the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) for school candidates across Ghana. While hundreds of thousands of candidates can now access their results, the Council has sanctioned several candidates over examination malpractice and withheld thousands of others pending further investigations.
According to WAEC, a total of 620,243 candidates—comprising 304,415 males and 315,828 females—sat for this year's examination. The candidates came from 20,789 schools and wrote the examination at 2,237 centres nationwide. WAEC also disclosed that 3,601 registered candidates were absent from the examination.
Following investigations into examination irregularities, WAEC approved sanctions against candidates found to have engaged in malpractice. The Council cancelled the subject results of 496 candidates and the entire results of 105 candidates, bringing the total number of cancelled results to 601. In addition, the subject results of 119 candidates and the entire results of 48 candidates have been withheld while investigations continue, making a total of 167 withheld results.
WAEC further announced that the subject results of 2,722 candidates from 229 schools have been withheld for additional scrutiny over suspected examination irregularities. The Council said investigations are expected to be completed by August 31, 2026, after which the affected results will either be released or cancelled depending on the findings.
Candidates whose results have been cancelled or withheld have been advised to visit WAEC's Irregularities Portal to check the reasons for the sanctions and obtain information on the next steps. School heads can also access details through their official login credentials. WAEC emphasized that the process is transparent and that affected candidates will be informed of the outcome once investigations are concluded.
The Council also cautioned candidates and the general public against fraudsters who claim they can alter or upgrade examination results for a fee. WAEC stressed that its results are secure, tamper-proof, and can be independently verified, urging candidates to ignore such fraudulent offers. It also thanked the Ministry of Education, the Ghana Education Service, security agencies, school authorities, supervisors, invigilators, examiners, and other stakeholders for their support in the successful conduct of the examination.
The release of the 2026 BECE results marks an important milestone for thousands of candidates across Ghana. However, WAEC's decision to cancel and withhold hundreds of results demonstrates its continued commitment to protecting the integrity of the examination system. As investigations into the remaining 2,722 cases continue, affected candidates are encouraged to follow the Council's official procedures and await the final outcome.