The 72nd Annual Council Meeting of the West African Examinations Council was held recently in Freetown, Sierra Leone with the election by acclamation of Prof. Thomas Brima Rick Yormah, former Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Fourah Bay College and former Pro Vice- Chancellor, University of Sierra Leone as the 21st Chairman of Council.
The Head, Public Affairs
WAEC Headquarters, Accra, Ghana, Mr. Demianus Ojijeogu in a statement said the new chairman succeeds Prof. Ato Essuman from the Republic of Ghana.
Ojijeogu said the meeting which was held from Monday 18th to Friday 22nd March 2024, and was declared open by the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Dr. Julius Maada Bio, who was represented by the Vice President, Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh.
In his address, the president congratulated WAEC on its 72nd anniversary and averred that the council is ranked among the leading forces that have changed and shaped the educational focus of the sub-region.
He noted that the council had played a prominent role in the educational development of the sub-region over the past 72 years and had served as a catalyst for the educational reforms that have evolved in the member countries.
The president stated further that the survival and growth of the council up to its present stature could be attributed principally to the support given by the governments of the five-member countries coupled with the commitment and dedication of the council members and staff, both past and present.
Maada Bio added that WAEC had served as a beacon of excellence to promote sub-regional cooperation and is the only pre-independence organisation that had survived the test of time. And pledged that his government is committed to sub-regional and regional cooperation and will always consider WAEC as a blueprint in the pursuit of our desire for greater and more functional regional collaboration.
In his speech, the Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education, Sierra Leone, Conrad Sackey, noted that since its inception in 1952, the council has played its role creditably by assisting in the development of sound education, and ensuring the maintenance of educational standards. This, he said, has given the people of the sub-region a vision of the great potentials that lie beyond examinations.
He congratulated WAEC for having remained relevant for over seven decades and still counting and urged all stakeholders to rally the council and stamp out examination malpractice in public examinations in the member countries.