The Lagos State Government has expressed serious concern over the mass failure of public school students in the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), revealing that over 26,000 students failed despite the state spending over N1.5 billion to cover their exam fees.
During a ministerial press briefing on Thursday in Alausa, Ikeja, the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Alli-Balogun, lamented that 45.7% of the 58,188 students who sat for the exam did not pass.
“45.7 per cent of the 58,188 students from public schools who sat for the exams did not pass.
Suffice to say that the sum of N1,577,794,000 was paid by the state government as examination fees for these students,” Alli-Balogun said.
He explained that the state invested N1,577,794,000 to ensure all eligible public school students had a chance to write the exam at no personal cost.
However, he noted that the results did not reflect the state’s substantial investment in education.
He also disclosed that 56,134 students were successfully registered as bona fide beneficiaries of the state’s sponsorship.
To improve transparency and ensure only qualified students benefit from future support, the commissioner said biometric and image registration had been introduced ahead of the 2025 WASSCE.
He confirmed that 56,134 students have already been captured for the next round of sponsorship.
In response to the alarming failure rate, the government has launched an intervention initiative — the Eko Learners’ Support Programme — to boost academic performance in both WASSCE and NECO.
“This forward-thinking initiative was designed to support and empower young scholars as a testament to the ministry’s commitment to improving the educational system in Lagos State,” Alli-Balogun stated.
Launched on January 14, 2025, the programme will feature 320 televised lessons across ten core subjects, including English, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Literature-in-English, History, Government, Yoruba, and Economics.
Each 30-minute lesson will be broadcast on Lagos Television and shared across digital platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter), forming a digital learning library accessible to all students.
“It is a supportive ecosystem that fosters academic achievement, creativity, and critical thinking. Every student deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential, regardless of background or socio-economic status,” he added.
He concluded by urging students especially those in boarding schools to take full advantage of the initiative.
“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.”
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