The Campaign for Equal Rights and Opportunities for All Nigerians (CERON) has condemned the federal government’s approval of a N50,000 registration fee for the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO), describing the decision as insensitive amid the country’s worsening economic hardship.
The group warned that the increase would place an additional financial burden on millions of Nigerian families already struggling with rising living costs and could worsen Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis.
The Federal Ministry of Education, in a memo signed by the Director of Senior Secondary Education, Adeniji Ibrahim, on behalf of the Minister, directed the Registrar of NECO to implement the new N50,000 examination registration fee, noting that the same amount had also been approved for WAEC.
Reacting in a statement, CERON Secretary, Francis Odiir, said the decision was disconnected from the realities facing ordinary Nigerians.
“The approval of the increase in examination fees is a clear indication that those in charge of this country do not understand the magnitude of the pain and suffering Nigerians are going through,” Odiir said.
He noted that many parents are already struggling to provide basic necessities for their families, making the timing of the fee increase inappropriate.
“Parents are already battling to provide food for their families, not to mention quality education. At a time like this, increasing examination fees is simply not right. Rather than easing the burden on citizens, the government is adding to their hardship,” he added.
Odiir urged the federal government to immediately reverse the decision, arguing that the proposed increase had been widely rejected by parents and education stakeholders.
He warned that the higher registration fee could force many students to abandon their education because their families may be unable to afford the cost, thereby worsening Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis by making secondary school examinations inaccessible to many candidates.
He also called on the government to take the country’s current economic realities into account when formulating public policies, stressing that measures that further increase the financial burden on citizens should be avoided.
