By Jacob Kubeka –
President Muhammadu Buhari has rejoiced with the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) on the occasion of its 70th anniversary, which also coincides with the 70th annual council meeting being hosted in Abuja, Nigeria from March 14 to 18.
The President’s goodwill message was conveyed by Special Adviser on Media & Publicity, Femi Adesina, in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday.
As a proud founding member of the foremost examining board for the people of West Africa, President Buhari affirmed that Nigeria values the shared commitment with other Members of the Council and would continue to engage with other partners to achieve the Council’s mandate of maintaining quality educational standards that prepare the next generation to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
The President noted with delight that for the last 70 years, the West African examination body has brought the English-speaking West Africans together to encourage academic and moral excellence through a qualitative and reliable educational assessment.
As delegates to the 70th council meeting deliberate, reflect and celebrate the gains of the decades, the Nigerian leader urged them to remember the core values of excellence, integrity, professionalism, accountability and transparency, at the heart of WAEC, and stand firmly by them.
The President believed that just as member-nations have survived a difficult year marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and in some countries, previous years of internal conflict, this cherished education institution would continue to thrive as a world-class examination body.