KEY POINTS
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NECO records 60% pass rate in 2025 SSCE.
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Exam malpractice cases drop by over 60%.
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Kano, Lagos, and Oyo lead in performance.
The National Examinations Council (NECO) has released the 2025 Senior School Certificate Examination results, confirming that 60.26 percent of candidates achieved five credits and above, including Mathematics and English. The results were announced 54 days after the last paper was written.
Registrar Ibrahim Wushishi disclosed the outcome at a press conference in Minna, Niger State, on Wednesday. He said out of 1,358,339 candidates who sat for the June/July exams, 818,492 passed with the required five credits, including the core subjects. A larger number, 1,144,496 candidates, representing 84.26 percent, achieved five credits irrespective of Mathematics and English.
According to Wushishi, a total of 1,367,210 candidates registered for the exams, almost evenly split between 685,514 males and 681,696 females. He added that candidates with special needs numbered 1,622. Of these, 941 had hearing impairments and 191 were visually impaired.
NECO reports fewer malpractice cases
The registrar also revealed a sharp decline in examination malpractice cases. A total of 3,878 candidates were involved in irregularities, compared with 10,094 in 2024, a reduction of 61.58 percent. However, 38 schools across 13 states were flagged for mass cheating. Nine supervisors from Rivers, Niger, the Federal Capital Territory, Kano, and Osun were recommended for blacklisting due to misconduct ranging from poor supervision to aiding malpractice.
Wushishi further disclosed that a communal clash in Lamorde, Adamawa State disrupted examinations in eight schools, affecting 13 subjects and 29 papers. Talks with the state government are underway to reschedule the exams for affected students.
NECO outlines state performance breakdown
According to Punch, Kano topped the results table, with 68,159 candidates passing with five credits, including Mathematics and English, representing 5.020 percent. Lagos followed with 67,007, while Oyo ranked third with 48,742 successful candidates. Gabon recorded the poorest performance with no student meeting the benchmark.
NECO also said it has reduced examinable subjects to 38 under the revised curriculum, which it says will shorten the waiting period for results. The council recently began transitioning from paper-based tests to a computer-based model, with several schools participating in the pilot phase.
