Upper East Region Prepares for 2026 BECE: Over 22,000 Students Set to Write Exams
The first Monday of May 2026 dawned with a buzz of anticipation across Ghana’s Upper East Region. In every town and village, families and teachers rallied around their young scholars as the Ghana Education Service (GES) announced the start of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE). This year, 22,326 candidates are preparing to take this pivotal exam from May 4th to May 11th, a crucial gateway to senior high school. The Regional Education Directorate has orchestrated this massive undertaking across 95 examination centres, ensuring that every district and municipality is included. For thousands of junior high school students, the BECE is not just another test; it’s a milestone marking their readiness to step into the next phase of academic life. Among the candidates, the majority, 19,381 students, hail from public schools, with the girls (10,994) outnumbering the boys (8,387). Private schools have also contributed 2,945 candidates, including 1,557 girls and 1,388 boys. This continued rise in female participation has been celebrated by education stakeholders as evidence of successful initiatives to empower girls through education. Bolgatanga Municipality stands out as the region’s academic powerhouse, registering 2,974 candidates spread across 14 centres. Not far behind are the Bongo District with 2,085 candidates and the Kassena-Nankana West District with 1,936 candidates. Other districts with strong showings include Bawku Municipality (2,038), Talensi District (1,577), and Bawku West District (1,499). However, the numbers also reveal significant variation. Builsa South District will send only 719 candidates to the exam halls, the lowest in the region. Binduri District and Bolgatanga East District report 1,036 and 711 candidates, respectively. In Nabdam District, every one of the 756 candidates comes from a public school, with not a single private school student among them. Meanwhile, the GES has issued a stern reminder to all candidates: discipline and integrity must guide their actions. The Directorate has implemented strict monitoring systems and warned that all forms of malpractice will be met with serious consequences. “Candidates are advised to remain focused, prepare adequately, and avoid any form of examination malpractice,” the statement stressed. As the examination week kicks off, the Upper East Region stands united in support of its young learners, hopeful that this year’s BECE will be a testament to both academic achievement and the growing opportunities for all, especially girls, in education. Source: Apexnewsgh.com
Commercial drivers must at least a pass in BECE Mathematics — Akpaloo
A pass in Mathematics at the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) level should be part of the requirements for acquisition of driver’s license, Kofi Akpaloo, Founder and Leader of Liberal Party Ghana, (LPG) has suggested. Mr Akpaloo therefore called on the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Authority (DVLA) to ensure that the necessary policy initiatives were rolled out. “Driving involves mathematics and failure in calculations on the road has contributed to the rising number of accidents on our roads. “Driving is mathematics, you should be able to know that, if I driver at 50km per hour, I will be at this place, if you don’t have that knowledge how will you be able to calculate the distance between the vehicle in front of you, anticipate the breaking,” he added. Mr Akpaloo was speaking at the Ghana News Agency Motor Transport and Traffic Department (MTTD) Road Safety Campaign platform which seeks to use prominent persons to provide continuous education on the need to be safe on the roads and reduce road carnage. The Project seeks to also create consistent and systematic weekly awareness advocacy on the need to be cautious on the road as a user, educate all road users of their respective responsibilities, and sensitize drivers especially of the tenets of road safety regulations, rules, and laws. Mr Akpaloo who was Election 2020 LPG Presidential Candidate said it was worrying to see how some drivers illegally overtake in curves and other unauthorized places. He cautioned road safety regulators to organize sensitization programmes for commercial drivers to be abreast with road safety regulations as it was key in curtailing the carnage on the roads. Mr Akpaloo said illegal acquisition of driver’s license was one of the major problems which contributed to the increase in road crashes in the country. He said a driver who was required to have gone through a period of training from a certified driving school rather preferred the short-cut learning from others. He said “if drivers were trained properly, they could contribute more positively to the reduction of road traffic accidents and their related consequences on the country”. Mr Akpaloo urged the DVLA to redirect drivers who seek to acquire licenses to registered driving schools for training to acquire the requisite training to reduce accidents in the country. Mr Francis Ameyibor, Tema Regional Manager of the Ghana News Agency appealed to the media to upscale public education on road safety, stressing that, “road safety is a shared responsibility, we must not leave anyone behind”. He commended the MTTD Tema Regional Command for the effort to team-up with the Ghana News Agency Office to embark on the weekly public education campaign to make the roads safe for all. Mr Ameyibor urged drivers to be responsible on the road and protect pedestrians by stopping for them to cross while cautioning pedestrians to only cross the roads at designated places. GNA Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093