John K. Kapi, the Head of Public Affairs at the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), has defended the current structure of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), following criticism by the Africa Education Watch.
According to WAEC, the proposal to reduce the number of examinable subjects for BECE candidates will limit learning.
He argued that limiting the number of subjects at the basic level would affect how BECE candidates prepare academically.
John K. Kapi highlighted that the current BECE structure exposes candidates to a wider range of subjects, which helps ensure a more balanced education.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Thursday, May 7, Mr Kapi argued, “If you look at the level at which we are assessing these children—their maturity level and all of that—if we are limiting them to just a few subjects, I believe that what we’re going to do is simply to be limiting the children to just a few things that they pay more attention to”.
“I’ve heard you asking whether it should not be the case where the children will not pay too much attention to a general paper because they think that it’s really not going to be assessed, you know, it’s not going to be anything big to be assessed,” he added.
WAEC comments follow. Kofi Asare, the Executive Secretary of EduWatch, has called for a reform in the structure of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
The EduWatch labelled the current BECE format as a torture on learners just for school placement.
According to Kofi Asare, the current BECE format places undue pressure on students due to the number of subjects the candidates are required to write within a limited period.
He further argued that the current arrangement is outdated and does not reflect modern assessment systems used in other countries.
Kofi Asare proposed reducing the ten subjects to four subjects: Math, English, Science and General Paper.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, May 7, Kofi Asare wrote, “Piling 10 subjects over a 5-day high-stakes BECE just for school placement is torture on learners.
Reduce to 4 subjects: Math, English, Science & General Paper. Others even use an aptitude test plus continuous assessment. This is 2026, not 1996”.
Meanwhile, the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination began on Monday, May 4, with over 620,000 candidates across Ghana sitting for the exams.
The exams conducted by the West African Examinations Council will run until May 11, with 620,141 candidates from 20,395 schools set to participate.
The exam officials have disclosed that they have tightened measures to curb malpractice, taking a firm stance against examination malpractice.
Of the 620,000 candidates, 304,349 are boys, and 315,792 are girls, with the 2026 BECE candidate increasing by 16,813 candidates, or 2.7%, compared to the 2025 BECE 603,328 candidates.