The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has elected Prof. Thomas Brima Rick Yormah as the 21st Chairman of Council during its 72nd Annual Council Meeting in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The meeting was opened by the President of Sierra Leone, who praised WAEC for its role in shaping educational focus in the sub-region and promoting sub-regional cooperation.
The Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education in Sierra Leone also commended WAEC for its assistance in developing sound education and maintaining educational standards, but urged stakeholders to stamp out examination malpractice.
The Freetown City Council and the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) were commended for their efforts to improve students’ performance in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE). At a meeting attended by delegates from all five member countries, three Ghanaian candidates were honoured with the WAEC International Excellence Award for their outstanding performance in the WASSCE for School Candidates, 2023. The Augustus Bandele Oyediran Award for the Best Candidate in West Africa, 2023 also went to one of these candidates.
Two candidates from Sierra Leone were honoured with the National Distinction and one candidate received the National Merit Award. The meeting also saw the conferring of awards on an eminent citizen of Sierra Leone and the election of a new Vice Chairman of Council.
The Council holds its meeting yearly in rotation among The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. The 71st Meeting was hosted in Banjul by The Gambia’s government while Liberia’s delegation invited members to host the 73rd edition in March 2025. During this week-long meeting, delegates received reports on WAEC’s operations in the preceding year as well as information on educational programmes and developments in all five member countries.
Council also ratified decisions taken by its various committees and considered action points from national offices.
The meeting began with a lecture entitled “Moving Towards the Light: Revisioning Higher Education” delivered by Professor Miriam Elizabeth Conteh-Morgan, Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University of Sierra Leone. Council was urged to collaborate more closely with WAEC to improve students’ performance in WASSCE while outstanding candidates from Ghana and Sierra Leone were honoured with awards.
Finally, an eminent citizen of Sierra Leone was recognised for his contributions towards achieving Council’s objectives while a new Vice Chairman was elected for a one-year tenure.
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) held a meeting where they discussed the need to strategically position themselves to meet the needs of stakeholders in their respective domains. They received and commended reports from the Registrar’s Annual Report and the Research Department of WAEC, stressing the importance of collaboration in disseminating research reports to policymakers for educational improvement in the subregion.
The council also appreciated Chief Government Nominees for their reports and commended respective governments for their educational initiatives. At the end of the meeting, the Chairman of Council gave kudos to member countries’ governments and officers for maintaining strong ties with WAEC and assured them that his collaboration with them will remain a vital part of his life history.
