Delivering his keynote address, the Acting Head of WAEC, Patrick Ndulu told the well attended gathering that the award ceremony is an integral and indispensable aspect of his institution’s tradition to recognize and inspire excelling pupils of national public examinations.
According to Patrick Ndulu, his entity was established by an Act of Parliament with specific mandates, principles and guidelines to control, regulate, supervise, scrutinize and ensure that its national examinations are conducted in consonance with the Ministry of Education Science, and Technology set standards and also international best academic practices.
He explained that his institution has been very committed and relentless in scrutinizing and shaping the National Primary School Examination, Basic Education Certificate Examination and the West Africa Senior Secondary School Examination results,
As acting head of council, he said, he would leave no stone unturned to maintain concretize standards by streamlining council’s planned programmes and activities.
The WAEC boss highlighted constraints facing the council, but however expressed thanks to officials of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology for their continued financial, technical, and moral support towards ensuring the effective and efficient administration of council’s mandates and plans on concretizing standards, discouraging exams malpractices and inspiring deserving students to broaden their horizon in academia.
Patrick Ndulu told his audience that, it is about time Sierra Leone that used to be decorated, admired at and referred to as the Athens of Africa by great and astute, scientists, historians, and geographers’ philosophers and other renowned academics in Africa, Europe and elsewhere restore its glory by laying wider and greater emphasis, coupled with a programme designed already to inject new blood into the overall administration of the council.
He concluded by admonishing students who received the meritorious awards from council to accord special attention to their academic activities, implore parents to provide the necessary guidelines, environment and encouragement and at the same time the robust effort and sleepless nights of staff of council to collate results, noting council recognize, appreciate, and would continue to do such in all it national examinations.
The Guest Speaker, who is the Chief Education Officer in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Dr. Kamara first and foremost, congratulated the leadership of the West Africa Examination Council and staff for their dedication and strong commitment to the successful implementation of Council’s clear cut objectives on national development programmes and the deserving students and exams officials.
Dr. Kamara emphasized that Council has no room for students or candidates from schools that are not registered and approved by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, noting that such has created serious virus for council over the years and admonished deserving students to maintain their academic heights, and excellence as they are young and brainy with a huge prospects ahead.
Dr. Victor Kabbia who is in charge of the West Africa Examination Council Endowment Fund said the endowment fund was set up by the council with the purpose of organizing such occasion for the awarding of meritorious awards to deserving students and officials of Council.
Dr. Kabbia further intimated that the fund has a committee comprised of officials of the Ministry of Education Science and Technology with accountable and transparent track record, coupled with its positive and active involvement in all Council’s awards ceremonies.
He disclosed that the fund has a special donation for excellence performance; as such donations are geared towards promoting education and is being sourced by the Government of Sierra Leone, the West Africa Examination Council, contributors, friends, industries and nongovernmental organizations both nationally and internationally.
The fund, he went on is also meant to organize quiz competitions by stimulating academic challenges among students , ginger them in their pursuit for their educational achievements, and it has earned tremendous achievements accolades for its distinctive and remarkable role towards promoting education across the country.
However, Alpha Umaru Saw bag first position in the WASSSE and Lian Nicols took fist position in the BECE examination for 2014.
