By Julius Konton
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC), has officially commenced the full implementation of its long-anticipated Digital Certificate Services System.
The system, known as WAEC DigiCert, commenced in The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
The launch marks a major milestone for WAEC in the digital transformation of education administration in West Africa.
It represents one of the most significant technological reforms in WAEC’s more than 70-year history, as the Council continues efforts to modernize its services, and enhance the integrity, accessibility and security of academic credentials issued to candidates annually.
WAEC DigiCert is a mobile and web-based platform. It is designed to allow candidates, institutions, employers, and government agencies to access, request, verify, confirm and securely share digital versions of original WAEC certificates.
The system also enables candidates to recover lost or forgotten examination numbers, a long-standing challenge for graduates seeking employment or further education.
Each year, WAEC conducts examinations for over three million candidates in its five member states, issuing certificates that are frequently required for university admissions; employment verification; international credential assessments and migration processes.
Until now, reliance on physical certificates has often resulted in delays, loss, forgery and administrative bottlenecks.
Head of WAEC in Liberia, Dale Gbotoe, described the digital platform as a reliable, secure and cost-effective innovation.
“The system guarantees authenticity, significantly reduces the risk of forgery, and offers enormous cost and time savings for users.”
Gbotoe added: “Candidates no longer need to travel long distances or wait extended periods to access or verify their academic records.”
With the launch, each digital certificate issued through DigiCert is tamper-proof, traceable, and verifiable in real time; an important safeguard as certificate fraud remains a major concern for employers and institutions across Africa and beyond.
The full rollout follows a successful pilot phase in Nigeria, WAEC’s largest examination market, where the platform reportedly received overwhelmingly positive feedback from candidates, universities, credential evaluation agencies, and international institutions.
WAEC DigiCert positions the Council to meet the standards, while aligning with international best practices in digital credentialing.
Gbotoe has meanwhile, assured the public that the introduction of DigiCert will not eliminate or disrupt the traditional printing and issuance of physical certificates.
Instead, the digital system is intended to complement existing processes, giving candidates greater flexibility and faster access to their academic records.