‘25 per cent of Sudan certificate exam candidates absent’

The Sudanese Teachers’ Committee reported that 25 per cent of registered candidates for the Sudanese Certificate exams were absent as exams continued from last weekend across several states and external centres.

Images circulating on social media highlighted the stark emptiness of exam halls in Ed Damer, capital of Sudan’s River Nile state. One centre designed for 126 students saw just four candidates seated across two classrooms. Another centre, meant to accommodate 270 candidates, hosted only 10 female students. These centres mostly catered to students displaced from El Gezira state, who were unable to travel.

In a statement, the Ministry of Education accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of blocking numerous students from reaching safer areas to take their exams. Images also surfaced online showing students navigating the treacherous waters of the White Nile by boat from El Gutaina to Ed Duweim to attend the first day of exams.

The Ministry further alleged that the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North under the leadership of Abdelaziz El Hilu (SPLM-N El Hilu), had barred students in South Kordofan’s Delling from sitting the exams.

On Friday, the Wali of South Kordofan declared that holding exams in Delling was impossible due to the deteriorating security situation. Authorities also confirmed that exams could not take place in several neighbourhoods affected by violence.

Chad was accused by the Ministry of Education of preventing 10,000 Sudanese students from taking their exams, maintaining its decision to prohibit the Sudanese Certificate exams within its territory despite repeated mediation efforts. A widely shared photo showed a student who had travelled from Chad to Ed Damer to sit the exams.

The Teachers’ Committee criticised the Ministry’s handling of the exams, noting that while 83 per cent of candidates were registered, actual attendance suggested less than half were sitting the tests. 

“Those who insisted on holding this year’s exams under these conditions ensured their failure,” the committee stated, pointing to poor timing and inadequate arrangements.  

Many Sudanese condemned the government’s decision to cut internet services during exam hours, arguing that it failed to address external centres where many students are based.