Candidates warned against exam malpractice

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba during the launch of 2025 national examinations and assessments. [Wilbrforce Okwiri, Standard]

Candidates sitting the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam have been warned against engaging in malpractice and falling for scammers preying on candidates with a fake promise to provide exam papers.

On Monday, a section of the 996,078 KCSE candidates, begun taking their final test which will run until November 21.

Similarly, the Ministry of Education has indicated that preparations are now in their final stages for Grade 6 and Grade 9 national assessments, which are set to start next week.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said the examinations, administered by the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC), will be conducted under enhanced security and a multiagency framework to ensure credible outcomes.

“In total, 3,424,836 learners are expected to sit national assessments this year — that is KCSE, Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) and Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA),” Ogamba said in a statement.

“All examination centres will remain out of bounds to unauthorised persons. We expect centre managers to strictly follow KNEC guidelines in administering the examinations,” said the CS.

Ogamba also revealed that the government is tracking cases of fraudulent circulation of fake exam papers. .

The ministry has urged the public to report any suspicious activity through KNEC toll-free hotlines. “Cases involving police officers on examination duty may be reported directly to the Independent Police Oversight Authority via toll-free line 1559,”he said.

The CS however urged all stakeholders to uphold honesty and integrity throughout the examination period.

“Let us ensure that the values that underpin our education system are protected,” he said.

The candidature includes 1,298,089 learners for Grade 6 KPSEA and 1,130,669 candidates for Grade 9 (KJSE).

KCSE is the first to be administered in the 2025 cycle, with the junior and primary-level assessments set to follow in the coming week.

Ogamba said 342,687 contracted professionals have been deployed to manage the exercise.

They include centre managers, supervisors, invigilators, security personnel and officers from both the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Interior.

He said the State has mapped all examination centres to the nearest distribution points to ensure timely delivery of scripts, and contingency plans are in place to prevent candidates from missing their tests.

“All examination centres will remain out of bounds to unauthorised persons. We expect centre managers to strictly follow KNEC guidelines in administering the examinations,” said the CS in a statement.

Ogamba also revealed that the Government is tracking cases of fraudulent circulation of fake exam papers. Several suspects have already been arrested, and investigations are ongoing.

The Ministry has urged the public to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity through the provided KNEC toll-free hotlines.

“Cases involving police officers on examination duty may be reported directly to the Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA) via toll-free line 1559,”he said.

The CS however urged all stakeholders to uphold honesty and integrity throughout the examination period.

“Let us ensure that the values that underpin our education system are protected,” he said.

Monitoring teams are expected to traverse the country during the exam window to ensure full adherence to regulations.