The National Examinations Council, NECO, has affirmed that Kano is the top-performing state in the Federation for the 2025 Council Examinations, with 5.886 per cent and 39,351 candidates achieving five credits and above in both Mathematics and English.
A newspaper report had disputed this, naming Abia as the best-performing state, citing its state code number 001 as the basis for their ranking. NECO, however, described the report as misleading and incorrect.
The newspaper stated: “Kano Candidates scored 50-16 percent showing they failed as only 49.84 percent of its total 136.762 Candidates scored at least five credits including Mathematics and English.”
NECO, however, clarified that the newspaper’s report was merely an analysis of candidates’ performance by state and not the final results or official ranking of states, adding that referencing Abia State’s code number 001 was misleading.
An official of the Council, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “That is why on the final performance ranking Kano with its 015 code still becomes first state while the Abia State with 001 becomes 35th in the whole country.”
Performance sheets show that, using another metric, Lagos State led male performance rankings as the top state nationally, with 43,538 candidates registered and 43,202 sitting for the examinations. Of these, 4.44 per cent, or 30,203 candidates, achieved five credits and above in Mathematics and English.
Kano, in the male performance ranking, had 62,223 registered candidates, 61,854 sitting for the examinations, and 28,308 achieving five credits and above in Mathematics and English, representing 4.100 per cent.
The official added: “On Female ranking Kano becomes first, 137,338 registering and 136,762 sitting for the Examinations thereby having 5.020 per cent and Lagos becoming second with only 4.93 per cent.”
He therefore cautioned the media against misleading the public on matters of high importance such as education, emphasising that it is not to be taken lightly.
Speaking as Director of the Kano Educational Resource Centre, KERD, Hajiya Rabi Inuwa said Governor Yusuf had, even before the commencement of the examinations, paid over N3 billion in examination fees.
The NECO official also appealed to Governor Yusuf to settle unpaid examination fees from 2022 to date, which amount to N475 million.
