By Nelson Gonjani:
The Malawi National Examinations Board (Maneb) has disclosed that everything is set for the administration of this year’s Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) examinations, which commence today.
A total of 184,978 candidates are scheduled to sit this year’s examinations, marking a 13.2 percent increase from the 154,132 candidates who sat the examinations last year.
Maneb spokesperson Angella Kashitigu told The Daily Times that out of the 184,978 candidates, 96,787 are male while 88,191 are female.
Meanwhile, Kashitigu has urged the candidates to refrain from cheating during the examinations, saying such actions are punishable by law.
She added that Maneb is collaborating closely with the Malawi Police Service and the Malawi Defence Force to eliminate loopholes that could facilitate malpractices.
Her counterpart in the Ministry of Education, Mphatso Nkuonera, echoed the sentiments, urging candidates to utilise the knowledge they have gained throughout their time of study.
“We, as a ministry, urge them to remain focused and not to entertain anyone who approaches them with cheating strategies,” Nkuonera said.
Charles Kumchenga, Secretary General of the Teachers Union of Malawi, also called for concerted efforts among stakeholders to ensure the successful administration of the examinations.
“We call upon all stakeholders involved in these examinations to immediately report any difficulty they encounter in the process to relevant authorities,” Kumchenga said.
Meanwhile, education rights activist Benedicto Kondowe has stressed the need for the exercise to be handled with integrity.
Kondowe described examinations as a serious matter.
“Firstly, the rise in the number of candidates is a good development. This means that people are interested in education,” he said.
In the recently administered Primary School Leaving Certificate of Education and Junior Certificate of Education examinations, there was no reported case of cheating.
However, last year, four MSCE candidates were disqualified for attempting malpractices during the examination period.
This year’s MSCE examinations are scheduled to conclude on July 26 2024.— Additional reporting by Jarson Malowa
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