Girls lead in 2026 NECO common entrance examination participation
By Uji A Iliyasu Abuja
At least 58,187 candidates on Saturday sat for the 2026 National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) conducted by the National Examinations Council (NECO) for admission into Federal Government Colleges across the country.
Prof. Wushishi said the figure represents a decline from the 64,578 candidates who registered for the examination in 2025.
He said that female candidates accounted for the majority of those registered for this year’s examination, with over 31,000 girls participating compared with about 26,000 boys.
The NECO registrar attributed the development to sustained government efforts aimed at promoting girl-child education across the country.
Wushishi disclosed this while briefing journalists after monitoring the examination alongside the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Said Ahmad, at selected centres in Abuja.
“I think this reflects the efforts of the ministry in promoting girl-child education and shows that positive results are being achieved in that regard,” he said.
Wushishi also expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the examination nationwide, noting that reports received from centres across the country indicated that the examination was largely successful and free from major challenges.
Speaking after inspecting three examination centres in Abuja, the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Said Ahmad, commended the orderly conduct of the examination and the level of compliance with established guidelines.
“We have been to three schools and I am happy with the conduct of the examination in all the centres visited,” she said.
“The students are orderly, well seated and the examination started on time. I have also looked at the registration documents of the students and observed that the guidelines regarding the prescribed age bracket for the examination were adhered to.”
The minister, however, expressed concern over the number of candidates absent from some centres visited during the monitoring.
She disclosed that about 18 candidates were absent from one of the examination halls and stressed the need to investigate the reasons for the absenteeism.
Ahmad further commended the availability of facilities at the centres and reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to improving educational infrastructure to enhance effective teaching and learning nationwide.
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