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No fewer than 31,000 students from public secondary schools in Lagos State have failed the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), triggering concerns over the state of education in Nigeria's commercial capital.
The Lagos Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Alli-Balogun, who spoke during the 2025 Ministerial Press Briefing in Alausa on Thursday, April 24, 2025, disclosed that 31,596 students failed the examination.
He presented the education sector’s scorecard of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu's administration, revealing that the government had spent a total of ₦1,577,794,000 to cover examination fees for 58,188 bona fide students under its free education initiative.
However, more than half of the sponsored candidates failed the examination, despite the huge investment, sparking concerns about the quality of instruction and methods of student preparation in public schools in Lagos.
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The Commissioner noted that the state introduced a biometric and image registration process for all Senior Secondary III students to ensure transparency and avoid duplication. Through the initiative, 56,134 students were verified and registered as eligible beneficiaries for the 2025 WASSCE sponsorship.
“The state government is committed to relieving parents of the burden of exam fees,” Alli-Balogun stated.
“But we must also prevent wastage by ensuring only qualified students benefit from this programme.”
Lagos govt enrolls 30,000 out-of-school children
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The Commissioner also disclosed that about 30,000 out-of-school children were reenrolled in public schools across the state during the review period, reflecting the government's efforts to mitigate the social and economic consequences of youth disengagement.
According to him, the initiative aligns with the Education and Technology pillar of the Governor Sanwo-Olu's administration’s T.H.E.M.E.S+ agenda.
“We’ve introduced strategic interventions to address declining performances in WASSCE and other external examinations. Innovative solutions are being implemented, and we continue to invest heavily in education,” he added.
Alli-Balogun pointed to the Eko Learners’ Support Programme, launched on January 14, 2025, as a targeted intervention to support candidates preparing for WASSCE and NECO examinations.
ALSO READ: You can now resit WAEC examination if you fail - eligibility details revealed
He added that the Governor approved ₦102.5 million in housing loans for 2024, which covered 25 pending applications from 2020 and 93 newly approved beneficiaries in 2024 to boost teacher welfare.
In addition, 4,353 qualified teachers were recruited between 2023 and 2024 and deployed across various education districts and the Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board (LASTVEB).
The Commissioner advised students to steer clear of vices such as drug abuse, cultism, and gang violence, urging them instead to channel their energies into productive, co-curricular activities, often supported by NGOs.