Government Introduces Groundbreaking Support to Address WASSCE Failure in Lagos State

The Lagos State Government has raised concerns after revealing that over 26,000 students in public schools failed the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), despite massive funding by the state.

During a recent press briefing in Alausa, Ikeja, the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Alli-Balogun, disclosed that 45.7% of the 58,188 public school students who sat for the 2024 exams did not pass.

In his words, “45.7 percent of the 58,188 students from public schools who sat for the exams did not pass.”

The commissioner noted that the state government spent N1.577 billion to pay the WAEC fees for these students. “Suffice to say that the state government paid the sum of N1,577,794,000 as examination fees for 58,188 students who were captured for the year 2024 WASSCE,” he stated.

To improve transparency and ensure only genuine students benefit from government support in future exams, the commissioner revealed that the government introduced biometric and image registration for WASSCE 2025.

This new system successfully identified 56,134 eligible students for the next round of sponsorship.

In response to the high failure rate, Lagos State has launched an educational intervention called the Eko Learners’ Support Programme. This initiative is designed to help students prepare for both WASSCE and NECO, equipping them with tools and support to improve their academic performance.

According to Alli-Balogun, the programme began on January 14, 2025, and is part of a larger effort to enhance the state’s public education system.

The plan includes broadcasting 320 lessons across 10 key subjects, including English, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Economics, Government, History, Literature-in-English, and Yoruba.

Each lesson will run for 30 minutes and be aired on Lagos Television. Students will also be able to access the videos later on popular social media platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter). This will help create a digital learning space that is open to all.

“This forward-thinking initiative was designed to support and empower young scholars in attestation of the ministry’s commitment to advancing interest and management of the educational system in Lagos State,” the commissioner added.

Alli-Balogun emphasized that the programme is not just about passing exams. It aims to encourage critical thinking, creativity, and academic excellence, regardless of a student’s background or financial status.

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“It is a supportive eco-system that fosters academic achievement, creativity, critical thinking… every student deserves the opportunity to attain their full potential,” he said.

He encouraged all students, especially those in boarding schools, to make good use of the programme. “It is on this note that I urge and encourage students, more importantly, students in our boarding schools, to take full advantage of this initiative, as education is a lifelong journey,” Alli-Balogun said.

With the Lagos State WASSCE failure raising eyebrows across the education sector, the government hopes that the new support programme will help turn things around and give public school students a better shot at success in future exams.

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