Nigerian Student Association Rejects Age Limit for WASSCE, NECO Examinations

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has voiced strong opposition to the federal government’s newly introduced 18-year age limit for students writing the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and National Examination Council (NECO) examinations. According to the policy, starting from 2025, the minimum age for writing SSCE will be 18 years, with the government claiming it is a reaffirmation of existing regulations.

NANS President, Pedro Chibuzor, spoke at a workshop in Abeokuta, Ogun State, calling the policy "not in the best interest of Nigeria’s education sector." Chibuzor emphasized that the minister failed to consult with relevant stakeholders before announcing the policy, which has left many students concerned. "What if you are 18 years old and you write WAEC, and scored A in virtually all the subjects but in English Language, you got F9 or E8. Are you saying the person would have to wait till age 19 before he writes again? That is the question the Minister needs to answer," he questioned.

Chibuzor further highlighted that the policy may lead to increased rates of cultism and other social vices on university and polytechnic campuses. "When you have somebody who is 25 years old on campus in 100 Level, the person is also thinking about other things. He’s frustrated; he’s looking at his colleagues or age mates who have graduated and doing something better. So, he channels that frustration to a different thing entirely that is going to be detrimental to society," he warned.

The student leader also drew attention to the decline in cult-related incidents on campuses. "Before now, in the year 2000 or 2003, you would see on pages of newspapers that a high number of students were killed as a result of cult attacks; I wouldn’t want to call names. But we saw most of those stories occurring and recurring. But now you can bear me witness that such incidents have reduced drastically. We are not saying there is no cultism in our campuses, but to an extent, it has reduced."

NANS has called for the immediate reversal of the policy and reaffirmed its determination to combat drug usage, sexual harassment, and other social vices on campuses.