South Sudanese and foreign students sit for S.4 examination in Egypt. (-)

More than 200 candidates are sitting for the 2023-2024 South Sudan Certificate of Secondary Education Examination for the first time in the Egyptian capital Cairo.

The 245 students comprise 174 females and 99 males.

Among them are 25 foreigners from Somalia, Sudan, Burundi, Eriteria and Rwanda.

The refugee candidates started the exams on Monday, December4, on a range of science and art subjects until December 14, 2023.

Michael Mathiang Ngong, the Cultural and Educational Attache at the South Sudan Embassy in Cairo said the embassy has been lobbying for South Sudanese refugees to sit for exams in their own syllabus.

“We have always been looking forward to seeing that, our students here who have been studying the curriculum of South Sudan, get access to their own examination,” he said.

“It is very important to mention that the science students are more than arts, approximately 154 to 92 students. Regarding the process of the examinations and propaganda to the leakages of the exams, we have never recorded any throughout the few days that the exams has been going on.”

In South Sudan, nearly 45,000 students are sitting their Secondary Education school examination Certificate across South Sudan.

Among the candidates are 28,000 males, and 16,600 females, and also include 887 refugees.

Deputy Education Minister Martin Tako said this academic year’s examination has not been leaked as speculated.

He warned against malpractices during the exams and threatens severe penalties.