Kuni Tyessi in Abuja
Registrar, National Examinations Council (NECO), Prof. Dantani Wushishi, has been elected as the Vice-President of the Association for Educational Assessment in Africa (AEAA).
Also, NECO has been granted the rights to host the 2027 AEAA Conference in Abuja, Nigeria.
A statement issued by the Acting Director, Information and Public Relations, Azeez Sani, on Friday, said the decisions were endorsed by the AEAA General Assembly at the just concluded 42nd Conference of the Association in Arusha, Tanzania.
The twin developments reflect growing recognition of Nigeria’s influence in educational assessment with the demands of digital transformation and the integration of artificial intelligence in Testing and Certification.
Prof. Wushishi’s elevation follows his service on the AEAA Executive Council as representative of the West African sub-region.
Since assuming office as NECO Registrar in 2021, he has overseen a series of reforms aimed at modernising examination administration, expanding the council’s technological infrastructure and broadening its international reach.
NECO examinations are now conducted in eight foreign countries, extending the council’s footprints beyond Nigeria’s borders.
The award of the 2027 Conference hosting rights to NECO from August 16 to 20, 2027, is expected to provide a platform for the country to showcase ongoing reforms in educational assessment while hosting policymakers, researchers, examination administrators and education experts from across Africa.
Born on April 5, 1965, in Wushishi, Niger State, Prof. Wushishi is a scholar of Science Education with a specialisation in Chemistry Education.
Before his appointment to lead NECO, he built an academic career at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, and the Federal University of Technology, Minna, where he held several leadership positions, including Head of Department, Postgraduate Coordinator and Sub-Dean.
His reappointment as NECO Registrar by President Bola Tinubu earlier this year was widely seen as an endorsement of his technological and administrative reforms.
The latest developments in Arusha, Tanzania, further strengthen Nigeria’s standing within Africa’s educational assessment community and underscore its ambition to become a leading voice in the continent’s evolving examination landscape.