Pressure mounts on WAEC as think tank petitions gov’t over ‘exploitative’ scratch card fees

Consumer advocacy group CUTS International, Accra has launched a fierce campaign against what it describes as an “exploitative and unjustified” policy by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) — the continued imposition of scratch card fees on students to access their Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results online.

In a petition dated Tuesday, July 8, 2025, and addressed to the Ministry of Education, Ghana Education Service, and Parliament’s Select Committee on Education, CUTS is demanding urgent policy action to stop what it sees as a long-standing and unfair cost burden placed on students and families.

WAEC’s Result Access Model Under Scrutiny

Since transitioning to a digital platform in the early 2000s, WAEC has required candidates to purchase scratch cards — currently priced between GHS 15 and GHS 25 — in order to access their exam results online.

This year’s BECE, for instance, had about 600,000 candidates. Based on the minimum fee of GHS 15 per scratch card, CUTS estimates WAEC could rake in at least GHS 9 million just from result-checking charges.

“This model borders on extortion,” said Appiah Kusi Adomako, West Africa Regional Director of CUTS. “Before 2004, WAEC spent significantly on printing and logistics to deliver hard copies of results to schools. But now that the system is digitized, costs should have reduced — not been transferred to students in a commercialized manner.”

Global Comparisons and Ghana’s Disadvantage

Adomako argued that Ghana’s situation is increasingly out of step with global best practices.

“In countries like South Africa, Tunisia, Kenya, Zambia, Morocco, and Egypt, students can access their results online without paying a pesewa. Even here in Ghana, university students and candidates of exams like TOEFL, IELTS, and GRE access their results online for free,” he pointed out.

He questioned why Ghanaian students — many of whom already struggle with affordability challenges — should be subjected to what has now become a monetized access system.

“Education is a right, not a privilege. WAEC’s current model undermines that principle,” he added.

Placement Fees Also Criticized

Beyond examination results, CUTS is also criticizing the cost associated with accessing school placements through the Computerized School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS).

The digital system, introduced to improve transparency in placing students into Senior High Schools, also charges fees for students to check their placement status.

“This is another example of how technology, instead of easing burdens, is being used to shift costs to vulnerable households,” Mr. Adomako noted. “A system created to promote equity is now becoming a source of inequality.”

A 21-Year Practice Under Fire

WAEC introduced the scratch card system more than two decades ago, but CUTS insists that its longevity does not justify its legitimacy.

“That it’s been going on for 21 years doesn’t make it right,” Adomako said. “It only means we’ve allowed an unfair system to continue for far too long.”

The think tank is now calling on the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service to engage WAEC and end the practice by the end of the 2025 academic cycle.