The government has given a sum of GH¢55 million to the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) in order to prepare for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
According to Ms. Winifred Ampiaw, the Public Relations Officer of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), the total amount of monies received for the BECE is GH¢10.5 million, while the funds collected for the WASSCE amount to GH¢40 million.
The payment was made after the Parliamentary Minority voiced their displeasure with WAEC’s outstanding debt.
Minority Education Spokesperson Peter Nortsu-Kotoe has voiced serious worry over WAEC’s urgent need for approximately GH50 million to meet its financial obligations and ensure the smooth organisation of the upcoming 2023 examination.
He emphasised the difficulties that the WAEC is currently facing, noting the government’s failure to provide funds for paying those who gave their services during the 2022 WASSCE. This covers payments owed to supervisors, invigilators, examiners, and other staff members who assisted with the exam.
During an interview on Accra-based Citi FM, Winifred Ampiaw provided a detailed account of the funds collected, stating that:
“We have received some amount of money that will enable us to conduct the exams, for both WASSCE and BECE. However, there’s a payment plan to pay the rest.
“So far, we have received GH¢10.5 million to be able to conduct BECE, and for WASSCE, we have received GH¢40 million. This amount will enable us to take care of the pre-exams activities and the conduct of the exams itself. We’ve received GH¢55 million in total received, I know for a fact that we have received the money.
“The payment is for this year’s exams; we are supposed to spend a rough estimate of GH¢18 million for BECE. For WASSCE, the total cost for just the pre and the conduct of the main will take us to GH¢63.5 million. We are left with about GH¢7.5 million. However, I want to assure the public that yes, we are in the position to conduct both exams for this year,” she added.
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