Dr Amos Josiah Dangut has assumed office as Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), becoming the council’s 14th registrar and sixth Nigerian to hold the position.
Dangut’s five-year tenure began in October 2026 and will run until September 2031. He succeeds Pateh Bah of The Gambia.
Damianus Ojijeogu, Head of Public Affairs at WAEC Headquarters in Accra, Ghana, announced the appointment in a statement on Friday.
The appointment was ratified by WAEC’s International Governing Board at its 74th annual meeting in Accra in March 2026.
Dangut’s rise through WAEC
Dangut joined WAEC in 1998 after starting his professional career in education at St Louis College, Jos, in 1994, where he served as an examiner. He subsequently held several positions within the council, including assistant registrar, senior assistant registrar, deputy registrar and deputy registrar/controller across its headquarters and branch offices.
He became Head of WAEC’s Nigeria National Office on October 2, 2023, a position he held until he was appointed registrar. As head of the Nigerian office, Dangut oversaw initiatives aimed at improving examination delivery, security, integrity and efficiency.
The council credited him with championing the rollout of computer-based WASSCE, serialisation of question papers and the introduction of a digital electronic marking system.
He also oversaw the council’s Digital Certificate Portal, WAEC E-Study Platform, Digital Records Archive and digital systems for examination logistics, timetable management and monitoring examiners’ attendance.
Six Nigerians have led WAEC
Dangut becomes the sixth Nigerian to steer WAEC since Prof. Vincent Chukwuemeka Ike became the first indigenous Nigerian to hold the registrar’s office in 1971.
Ike served from 1971 to 1979. He was followed by Dr S. A. Akeju, who served as acting registrar from 1979 to 1980.
Other Nigerians who have led the council include Dr S. A. Esezobor, who served from 1987 to 1995; Alhaja Mulikat A. Bello, who served from 2007 to 2012; and Dr Iyi Uwadiae, who served from 2012 to 2019.
Dangut is therefore the sixth Nigerian among the 14 people who have served as WAEC registrar since the council’s establishment.
The new registrar holds a Bachelor of Agriculture in Animal Production, a Master of Science in Animal Science, a Doctor of Philosophy in Animal Science and a Master of Education in Administration and Planning. He has also served on the governing boards of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, the Joint Universities Preliminary Examinations Board and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board.
Dangut represented WAEC at education policy forums, including the Joint Consultative Committee on Education and the National Council on Education.
He also served as the West African sub-region’s representative on the Executive Board of the Association for Educational Assessment in Africa.
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