By Mary Onyia
Over 26,000 public school students in Lagos State failed the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), despite the state government’s payment of N1.577 billion to cover exam fees for 58,188 students. The failure rate of 45.7% was confirmed by Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Tolani Alli-Balogun, during the 2025 Ministerial Press Briefing in Ikeja.
He said, “45.7 per cent of the 58,188 students from public schools who sat for the exams did not pass.”.
In response to the poor results, the Lagos State government launched the Eko Learners’ Support Programme in January 2025 to boost academic performance. The initiative features televised and online lessons in 10 core subjects, including English, Mathematics, and Sciences, airing on Lagos Television and archived across digital platforms.
To improve access and management of public education, the state also created 17 new schools—spanning primary to senior secondary levels—and transferred over 17,000 students into key secondary school grades. A biometric registration process was introduced to ensure only eligible students benefit from government-funded exam sponsorship.
“The exercise successfully captured and registered 56,134 students as bona fide beneficiaries of the Lagos state government’s sponsorship for the examination,” the Commissioner said.
Alli-Balogun stressed the government’s commitment to fostering educational equity, creativity, and critical thinking among students, regardless of background. The digital learning strategy and infrastructural expansion aim to address persistent gaps in academic achievement across Lagos State public schools.