By Sallieu S. Kanu
FREETOWN — The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has released the 2025 National Primary School Examination (NPSE) results ahead of schedule, delivering them to the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education on 17 July — nearly a month earlier than last year’s release.
This year saw a surge in participation, with 171,112 pupils registered, including 88,494 girls and 82,618 boys — over 6,000 more than in 2024. Of those, 165,341 candidates sat for the exam, while 5,771 were absent. The ministry has pledged a thorough investigation into the rise in absentees.
In a strong performance, 128,766 pupils (66,371 girls and 62,395 boys) scored above the official cutoff mark of 230, translating to an impressive overall pass rate of 78.2%. Boys had a marginally higher pass rate (78.5%) than girls (77.9%), though girls outnumbered boys in both entry and pass figures.
Top honors go to Mansaray Kadijah Yawa Joe of Dele Nursery & Preparatory School in Wellington, who earned the highest T-score of 346 — a remarkable academic feat. International College of Makeni Primary School claimed the distinction of best-performing school, with a perfect 100% pass rate and a top average aggregate score of 332.39.
Other high-achieving schools included Romans International Academy, Modern Academy School of Excellence, Therenisa Memorial Primary School in Bo, and Shalom Ville Schools. Notably, more girls than boys featured in the top five performers, and 4,483 pupils (2,424 girls and 2,059 boys) scored 300 or higher — a marked improvement over last year.
This continued progress reflects the impact of sustained investment in foundational learning, with early results empowering faster school placements and education planning.