By James Ogunnaike, Abeokuta

The Senator representing Ogun West Senatorial District in the National Assembly of Nigeria, Solomon Adeola, has sponsored the 2026 West African Examinations Council (WAEC) examination fees for 2,000 indigent students across Ogun State.

The lawmaker, a member of the All Progressives Congress, said the intervention followed his earlier sponsorship of registration fees for 4,000 students for the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination in the state.

According to a statement issued by media adviser to Senator Adeola, Kayode Odunaro, the beneficiaries were drawn from 218 secondary schools across the three senatorial districts of the state.

The breakdown shows that 90 schools are from Ogun West, 68 from Ogun East and 60 from Ogun Central.

He explained that the number of beneficiaries could have been higher but was limited due to the inability of some students to obtain their Learners’ Identification Number (LIN) before the WAEC registration deadline which expired on Tuesday night.

Further analysis of the distribution shows that Abeokuta South Local Government Area recorded the highest number of beneficiaries with 416 students, closely followed by Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area with 403 students.

Speaking on the intervention, Adeola said he became aware of the students’ predicament during interactions with constituents who had earlier commended him for the free JAMB registration initiative.

He said, “I got to know about the plight of these students from a top government official from my district who said that just as many parents and guardians could not afford the cheaper JAMB fee of N7,200, many others also could not pay the higher WAEC examination fee for their wards.

“For me, as a guiding principle, finance must not be an impediment to educational advancement of my people. I decided to come in immediately. The number of beneficiaries would have been more but for the registration closing date.”

The senator added that he would continue to promote human capital development through the facilitation of educational infrastructure, scholarship and bursary programmes, as well as philanthropic payment of examination fees for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Principals of beneficiary schools reportedly commended the initiative, noting that many brilliant students often miss qualifying examinations due to lack of funds.

They described the intervention as timely, adding that it would help ensure that deserving students are not denied the opportunity to further their education due to financial constraints.