The National Examinations Council (NECO) has temporarily closed all its examination portals across Nigeria for scheduled maintenance. A notice on the NECO website informs users that the portals will be unavailable for an unspecified period, causing inconvenience to candidates, schools, and stakeholders.
The council also apologised for the disruption and requested patience while the maintenance work is underway.
The announcement reflects a commitment to ensuring its digital infrastructure remains reliable and efficient for millions of users, considering the WAEC incident few months earlier.
However, this move has sparked curiousity and concern among students and educators who rely on these portals for critical services like result checking and registration.
The shutdown affects platforms such as the NECO results portal (https://results.neco.gov.ng), which candidates use to access Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results, Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) outcomes, and other services like the National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE).
For instance, the 2024 SSCE External results, released on February 14, 2025, saw 62,929 candidates (75.62%) achieve credit and above in English Language, while 77,988 (93.93%) scored credit and above in Mathematics, according to Prof. Dantani Ibrahim Wushishi, NECO’s Registrar and Chief Executive Officer.
With such high traffic, the portals require regular updates to handle the volume and ensure seamless access. The maintenance is likely aimed at improving user experience, fixing bugs, and enhancing security to protect sensitive data.
Interestingly, the council has a history of leveraging technology to improve service delivery, such as introducing the NECO e-verify App for result verification in 2023 and using stanine software for grading.
These advancements, spearheaded by Prof. Wushishi since his appointment in July 2021, demonstrate NECO’s focus on credibility and efficiency. However, the temporary closure has left some users frustrated, particularly those needing urgent access to results or registration forms. The exams body has not specified the duration of the shutdown, but it assures users that the maintenance is essential for long-term improvements.
Recent activities and possible reasons for the NECO portal shutdown
Before the portal closure, NECO organised a Sensitisation and Training Workshop for Chief Examiners and other examiners at its headquarters in Minna, Niger State.
Hosted by Prof. Wushishi, the workshop brought together examiners from across Nigeria to enhance their skills and ensure consistency in grading standards. This event, the last activity posted on NECO’s social platforms, indicates a dedication to maintaining high-quality examination processes.
Prof. Wushishi, a Professor of Science Education, has consistently emphasised fairness and transparency, as seen in his efforts to curb examination malpractice, which reportedly dropped from 12,030 cases in 2023 to 8,407 in 2024.
The timing of the maintenance raises questions about what prompted NECO to shut down its portals nationwide. Several factors could be at play.
First, the high volume of users accessing the portals, especially after result releases, may have strained the system, necessitating upgrades to handle traffic surges.
For example, the 2024 SSCE saw 1,376,436 candidates, with 828,284 achieving five credits and above, including English and Mathematics. Such numbers put immense pressure on the digital infrastructure. Second, cybersecurity threats, like the reported data breach affecting over 150,000 Nigerian accounts in 2025, could have pushed NECO to bolster its systems against potential hacks. Protecting candidate information is critical, and maintenance may involve implementing stronger encryption or firewalls.
Another possible reason is the need to integrate new features or software. NECO’s history of adopting tools like the e-verify App suggests it may be updating its portals to support innovations, such as faster result processing or improved user interfaces.
Also, routine maintenance could address technical glitches reported by users, ensuring smoother access for future examinations like the 2025 Nov/Dec GCE, scheduled from November 26 to December 13.
Indeed, the shutdown disrupts immediate access, but it aligns with NECO’s long-term goal of becoming a credible, internationally acclaimed examination body, as Prof. Wushishi pledged in 2021.
Technext Newsletter
Get the best of Africa’s daily tech to your inbox – first thing every morning.
Join the community now!
