By Aminata Kuyateh
The Banjul Office of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) on Tuesday released the results of the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) with only 1,556 candidates obtaining credits in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics in The Gambia.
Of this number, 907 were female and 649, male.
A total of 20,610 candidates from 170 senior secondary schools registered for the examination, an increase of 1.79 percent from the 20,248 candidates registered in 2025.
Female candidates made up the majority, with 13,070, representing 63.42 percent, while 7,540 males, or 36.58 percent, sat the examination.
According to WAEC, candidates were examined in 40 subjects, including English Language, Mathematics, Civic Education, Science, Arts, Commerce, and technical and vocational subjects.
WAEC said 722 candidates obtained credits in nine subjects, 831 in eight subjects, 923 in seven subjects, 969 in six subjects and 1,076 in five subjects.
A further 1,316 candidates obtained four credits, 1,647 obtained three, 2,072 obtained two, while 2,964 candidates obtained one credit.
WAEC said the performance statistics were calculated from complete records for 19,605 candidates, representing 95.12 percent of those registered.
The examinations body said about 994 records remains incomplete and is still being processed. It noted that the performance figures could therefore change after the outstanding records are finalised.
98 results withheld
Meanwhile, the results of 98 candidates from 13 schools have been withheld over suspected examination malpractice, with WAEC saying the cases will be reviewed by the appropriate committee before final decisions are taken.