Adamu, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mr. David Adejo in Abuja, on Monday, said one Ajidapa Mariam, an indigene of Sokoto State got the highest scores of 201, while Idara Obot, an indigene of Akwa Ibom came second, with 200 scores.

He said that 15 candidates across a number of states scored one, which was the lowest score in the examination.

“This year, the examination took place in Nigeria, Benin Republic and Togo.  A total of 71,738 pupils sat for the examination, out of which 34,030 were males and 37,708 were females.

“In terms of participation, 96 per cent sat for the examinations, that is 68,633 pupils out of the 71,738.

Only 4 per cent were absent for various reasons, which could be related to their own choices.

“The state that had registered the highest number of candidates was Lagos state with 19,518, out of which 18,787 sat.

“In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), 8,623 and out of which only 306 were absent.

“Anambra State had the third highest state with the registration of 5,335 candidates with 265 absent,” he said.

The minister said that Kebbi state had the lowest registration of 74 candidates, adding that the 2022 examination witnessed more female pupils than males.

He said that the ministry would adhere to the admission criteria of 60 per cent on merit, 30 per cent on equality and 10 per cent on exigencies.

The minister directed that henceforth the schedule for the National Common Entrance Examination would be in April of every year, while admission processes must be completed by the end of May.

On the fate of Nigerian students from Ukraine, the minister said that the ministry was interfacing with the various universities through the National Universities Commission (NUC) to secure placement for the students.

The Registrar of the National Examination Council (NECO), Prof. Ibrahim Wushishi said the results of the 2022 Unity Schools examinations were an improvement over the 2021 results with remarkable performances.

“The 2022 results are a mass improvement in terms of the performance of the pupils, particularly the female performances. It is an improvement of the 2021 registration.

“There is an improvement this year in terms of the figure. Generally, the 2022 admission year is a little bit better than last year,” he said. (NAN)