Over 30 million to access WAEC digital certificate

The West African Examination Council, has said its digital certificate platform will enable over 30 million West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination holders to share the original copies of their certificates from anywhere in the world.

The Head of, the National Office, WAEC, Mr. Patrick Areghan, disclosed this in his address at the official launching of the WAEC digital certificate platform, on Thursday.

Areghan said, “The digital certificate platform, which is currently available to those who have taken the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination as far back as 1999 till date, will enable over 30 million certificate holders to access and share the original copies of their certificates from anywhere in the world. Those of 1970 – 1998 will be attended to shortly.”

The WAEC head noted that the development of the new digital certificate platform was in line with the council’s continuous record of meeting global needs by using cutting-edge technology to improve candidates’ experiences as they seek to continue their education.

He said, “The West African Examinations Council is committed to its mission of encouraging academic and moral excellence, promoting sustainable human resource development and international cooperation. It is committed to prompt service delivery, and today, it has taken an important step further with the development of the digital certificate platform.

“We are evolving to meet the demands of a changing world. We have migrated from physical registration of candidates to online registration; online verification of results and online result printouts, and others.

“The development of the new digital certificate platform is in line with WAEC’s continuous record of meeting global needs by using cutting-edge technology to improve candidates’ experiences as they seek to continue their education. Their mobility is of utmost importance to the West African Examinations Council.”

Areghan stated that the advent of technology had necessitated the need for the digital certificates rather than physical ones.

He said, “Since the commencement of assessment, certificates have been issued to represent students’ performance in examinations. Such certificates help them to advance their educational development or get involved in the world of work. So, for centuries, academic certificates have been issued as physical paper certificates. This is the traditional certificate.

“However, with the advent of technology, there is a need to integrate technology with students’ lifestyles. Today, we live in a digital world where instant satisfaction and accessibility are the ultimate. The process of receiving, retrieving, sharing, verifying or confirming academic certificates is rather cumbersome and moribund. The whole process is costly and could be frustrating, and the only answer can be found in Digital Certificates.”