THE National Examinations Council (NECO) has announced the release of the 2026 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) Internal results, revealing that 804,948 candidates, representing 58.67 per cent of those who sat for the examination, obtained five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics.
The council released the results 63 days after the conduct of the final paper of the examination.
Speaking at a press briefing in Minna, Niger State, on Thursday, NECO Registrar, Prof. Dantani Wushishi, disclosed that 1,378,048 candidates registered for the examination, while 1,371,992 eventually participated in the exercise, which was conducted between 15 June and 23 July 2026.
He further stated that 1,162,118 candidates, representing 84.70 per cent, obtained at least five credits regardless of whether they passed English Language and Mathematics.
Sharp Drop in Malpractice
Prof. Wushishi also announced a sharp reduction in examination malpractice during the 2026 exercise. According to him, 1,406 candidates were implicated in various forms of malpractice, compared to 3,878 recorded in 2025, representing a 64.74 per cent decline.
He expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for renewing his appointment for a second tenure as NECO Registrar and also thanked the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, for his confidence in his leadership.
The Registrar equally praised security agencies, particularly the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Department of State Services (DSS), for ensuring effective security throughout the examination period.
According to him, the commitment of the agencies strengthened discipline, discouraged examination misconduct and helped preserve the credibility of the examination process.
He assured stakeholders and members of the public that the council would continue to uphold the integrity, transparency and credibility of its examinations.
State-by-State Performance
Providing a state-by-state analysis of candidates’ performance, Wushishi disclosed that Kano State produced the highest number of candidates who obtained five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics, with 74,413 successful candidates.
Lagos State came second with 72,496 candidates, while Oyo State ranked third with 55,543 candidates achieving the same feat.
He, however, noted that NECO examination centres in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Niger recorded no candidate with five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics.
South-West Tops Regional Ranking
On regional performance, the Registrar said the South-West emerged as the best-performing geopolitical zone in the 2026 SSCE Internal examination.
He explained that the ranking was based on candidates who secured five credits and above, with separate classifications for those who passed with or without credits in English Language and Mathematics.
According to him, the South-West accounted for 24.600 per cent of candidates with five credits and above irrespective of performance in English and Mathematics, followed by the North-West with 22.100 per cent, North-Central with 19.00 per cent, North-East with 14.70 per cent, South-South with 10.53 per cent and South-East with 9.07 per cent.
Prof. Wushishi added that the council also prepared separate rankings based on gender for candidates who obtained five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics.
Zonal Breakdown
In the North-Central zone, Benue State led with 3.82 per cent, followed by Nasarawa State with 3.66 per cent, while the remaining states recorded varying performance levels.
For the North-East, Adamawa ranked among the leading states, ahead of Bauchi, Borno, Yobe and Gombe.
In the North-West, Kano retained the top position, followed by Katsina, Kaduna, Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara and Jigawa states.
The Registrar also unveiled separate performance rankings for male and female candidates across the six geopolitical zones, highlighting differences in achievement among the states.
In the South-East, Anambra State occupied the first position with 2.92 per cent, followed by Enugu with 2.14 per cent, while Ebonyi and Abia recorded 1.15 per cent and 0.57 per cent respectively.
Among male candidates in the zone, Anambra also ranked first with 2.47 per cent, ahead of Enugu with 1.79 per cent.
For female candidates, Anambra again led with 3.82 per cent, while Enugu followed with 2.45 per cent.
In the South-South region, Rivers State topped the chart with 3.03 per cent, followed by Edo with 2.17 per cent, Delta with 1.84 per cent, Akwa Ibom with 1.61 per cent and Cross River with 1.30 per cent.
The ranking for male candidates in the region placed Rivers first with 2.85 per cent, followed by Edo at 2.06 per cent, Delta at 1.79 per cent, Akwa Ibom at 1.48 per cent and Cross River at 1.21 per cent.
Among female candidates, Rivers again maintained the lead with 3.19 per cent, followed by Edo with 2.28 per cent, Akwa Ibom with 1.73 per cent, Cross River with 1.37 per cent and Delta with 1.29 per cent.
Prof. Wushishi explained that the comprehensive statistical tables accompanying the 2026 SSCE Internal results contain detailed rankings of candidates’ performance across the geopolitical zones, individual states and gender classifications.
