The National President of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Yomi Otubela, has stated that Nigeria is not ready to conduct the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) fully on a computer-based platform. Otubela cited inadequate infrastructure, uneven access to electricity, and limited digital devices in schools across the country as major constraints. He noted that while some private schools in urban centres may be prepared for such a transition, the majority of schools—particularly in rural and underserved areas—lack the basic requirements for computer-based testing. Otubela warned that pushing for a nationwide digital exam without addressing these gaps would deepen educational inequality. He urged the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) to adopt a phased approach, allowing time for schools to upgrade facilities and teachers to receive digital training. According to Otubela, the current disparity in technological access between private and public schools, as well as between urban and rural institutions, makes a uniform computer-based system impractical by 2026.
Yomi Otubela's warning about Nigeria's unreadiness for a full computer-based WASSCE in 2026 cuts to the core of the country's long-standing digital divide. His assessment isn't speculative—it's grounded in the reality that most public schools still struggle with basic electricity, let alone computer labs or reliable internet. That a national exam meant to be uniform could be jeopardised by infrastructure gaps exposes how technological policy often outpaces ground realities in Nigeria.
The issue isn't resistance to progress but the uneven terrain on which it's being implemented. Otubela's reference to private schools in urban areas being better equipped highlights a two-tier education system where privilege determines access to modern learning tools. When WAEC contemplates a digital shift, it risks entrenching this divide unless deliberate investments are made in public institutions. The absence of nationwide power stability and device availability isn't new, yet planning continues as if these hurdles don't exist.
For millions of students in public and rural schools, a rushed digital exam format could mean lower performance not from lack of knowledge, but lack of access. Their results may reflect infrastructure poverty more than academic ability. This isn't just about exams—it's about equity in opportunity.
A pattern emerges: policy ambition frequently detaches from implementation capacity in Nigeria's education sector. Reforms are announced with fanfare, but the groundwork is left to lag.
