WAEC appoints Nigeria’s Dangut as new registrar

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has appointed Dr Amos Josiah Dangut as its new Registrar and Chief Executive Officer.

Dangut, a Nigerian, officially assumed office on October 1, 2026, taking over from Alhaji Pateh Bah of The Gambia.

He will serve a five-year term that will run until September 2031.

His appointment was approved by the Council, the international governing body of WAEC, during its 74th Annual Meeting held in Accra, Ghana, in March 2026.

Before his new appointment, Dangut served as the Head of the Nigeria National Office from October 2023 to September 2026. His new role makes him the 14th Registrar of the examination body.

Born on October 2, 1967, Dangut has an academic background in agriculture, education and administration. He obtained a Bachelor of Agriculture in Animal Production in 1991, followed by a Master of Science in Animal Science in 1994.

He later earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Animal Science in 2017 and a Master of Education in Administration and Planning in 2020.

Dangut started his career in education in 1994 at St. Louis College, Jos, where he worked as a WAEC examiner. He joined WAEC in 1998 and went on to occupy several positions within the organisation over the years.

His previous roles included Assistant Registrar in the Test Development Division in Ogba, Lagos, Head of Examinations Security, Deputy Branch Controller in Uyo and Bauchi, Branch Controller in Yola and Controller of the Post-Examinations Department.

He also served as Zonal Coordinator in Ikeja and later became Deputy Registrar and Head of the National Office before eventually becoming the substantive Head of the Nigeria National Office.

Over more than two decades with WAEC, Dangut was involved in test development, examination administration, security and activities carried out after examinations. His work also included the use of technology in different areas of the examination process.

During his time as Head of the Nigeria National Office, several digital systems and examination processes were introduced or expanded under his leadership. These included the Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination, serialization of question papers and the Digital Electronic Marking System.

He was also involved in the Digital Certificate Portal, WAEC E-Study Platform and Digital Records Archive, as well as technology-based systems used for examination logistics and monitoring of examiners.

Dangut has also received recognition for his work in the education and examination sector. The Nigeria Examinations Committee commended him for his handling of examination matters between 2000 and 2006.

He also received an Award for Meritorious Service from the Ondo State Government during his National Youth Service Corps programme.

Beyond WAEC, Dangut has served on the boards of several education-related organisations, including the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, the Joint Universities Preliminary Examinations Board and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board.

He has also served on the board of Grange Educational Foundation and represented WAEC at the Joint Consultative Committee on Education and the National Council on Education.

Dangut has written papers published in Nigerian and international journals and has presented at a number of conferences. He currently represents the West African sub-region on the Executive Board of the Association for Educational Assessment in Africa.

He is a Fellow of the Science Teachers Association of Nigeria and a member of the Nigeria Institute of Management.