GES Bans Tainted Officials from 2026 BECE as Record 620,141 Candidates Prepare to Sit

The Ghana Education Service has barred all supervisors and invigilators implicated in last year’s examination malpractice from the upcoming 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination, as the country prepares for its largest BECE cohort yet.

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has taken sweeping action to purge its invigilation ranks ahead of the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), officially prohibiting all officials linked to malpractice during last year’s exams from playing any role in this year’s exercise.

The affected supervisors and invigilators — many of whom remain under active investigation — have been barred from all coordination and supervision duties as the GES moves to restore public confidence in the integrity of Ghana’s national examination system.

Addressing a press briefing on preparations for the exams, scheduled to run from May 4 to May 11, Director-General of the GES Ernest Kofi Davis said investigations into the 2025 malpractice cases were nearing completion, with final disciplinary outcomes expected shortly.

“Investigations into the alleged malpractice cases are nearing completion,” Mr. Davis told reporters, adding that the exclusion of compromised officials was essential to ensuring a level playing field for all candidates.

To plug the staffing gap left by the banned officials, the GES has deployed 21,791 vetted invigilators — a figure Mr. Davis said was sufficient to guarantee transparent and credible conduct of the examinations.

Record Candidate Numbers

The crackdown on misconduct coincides with a notable surge in participation. A total of 620,141 candidates are registered to sit this year’s BECE, a 2.7 percent increase over the 603,328 who wrote the 2025 exams. Of the total candidates, 315,792 are girls and 304,349 are boys, spread across 20,395 schools nationwide.

Nationwide Sensitization Drive

Beyond the personnel blacklist, the GES has rolled out a sensitization campaign across all 16 regions of the country, targeting students, parents, and teachers with messaging on the consequences of examination fraud and its long-term damage to Ghana’s education system.

Authorities confirmed that all examination materials and logistics are in place ahead of the May 4 start date, with the Service reiterating its commitment to ensuring that those who undermined the system in 2025 will have no influence over the futures of this year’s candidates.