The West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) has reported that the government has settled only 15% of the total arrears owed to them.
Earlier flagged by the Minority in Parliament, the arrears involve examiners, invigilators, and supervisors from the 2022 examination, creating concerns ahead of this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
The ranking member on the Education Committee in Parliament, Peter Nortsu-Kortoe, advised prompt payment by the government.
Urgency is stressed due to the potential risk of Ghana losing its Headquarters status due to the substantial debts owed to WAEC.
John Kapi, a member of WAEC’s Communication Unit, revealed that the government has provided 10 million Ghana cedis, constituting 15% of the total arrears for BECE 2021 and 2022.
However, outstanding payments remain, and further funding is crucial for the smooth execution of exams and result processing.
While printing for ongoing exams has proceeded, the marking and final result processing require additional funding. Kapi cautioned that without more payments, certain aspects of the examination process could be compromised.
Despite these financial concerns, over 600,000 students, including 300,323 males and 300,391 females from 18,993 schools nationwide, have begun this year’s BECE on August 7, 2023.