The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has opposed the Federal Ministry of Education’s approval of a proposed increase in the registration fees for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) examinations, describing the decision as insensitive to the economic realities facing Nigerian families.
In a statement issued on Saturday, NANS President, Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, urged the Federal Government to immediately reverse the approval, arguing that higher examination fees would further limit access to education for students from low-income households.
The students’ body claimed that the revised fees would raise the cost of registering for both examinations to about ₦100,000, excluding additional charges imposed by schools, a development it said would place an unbearable financial burden on parents already grappling with rising living costs.
NANS said increasing the cost of public examinations at a time of widespread economic hardship was inconsistent with efforts to expand access to education.
According to the association, many families are already struggling to cope with the impact of ongoing economic reforms, making the proposed increase difficult to justify.
The organisation also faulted the process leading to the decision, alleging that students were not consulted before the approval was granted.
It maintained that policies affecting millions of candidates should involve engagement with key education stakeholders, including representatives of Nigerian students.
NANS further called on the Federal Ministry of Education, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) to prioritise affordability in the administration of public examinations, insisting that examination costs should not become a barrier to secondary school completion.
The association warned that it would continue to advocate policies that protect the interests of Nigerian students and called on the ministry to review the decision in the interest of equitable access to education.
Neither the Federal Ministry of Education, WAEC nor NECO had responded to the statement as of the time of filing this report.
