Sunyani, April 8, GNA - A total of 34,432 candidates made up of 19,442 females and 14,981 males in the Brong-Ahafo Region are registered to write the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) which will start on April 11 and end on April 15. Mr. Yaw Manu-Yeboa, the acting Regional Director of Education, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview on Thursday that 37,994 candidates made up of 21,430 boys and 16,564 girls registered for the examination last year.

He said 311 candidates made up of 152 girls and 159 boys did not however write the examination, saying, majority of the girls who did not write were either pregnant or nursing mothers whilst most of the male counterparts had traveled abroad.

Mr Manu-Yeboah said some of the schools, in consultation with Parent/Teacher Associations and School Management Committees 93sieved" their final year students before registering them in order to obtain better grades and that was why this year's candidates were less than last year's.

He expressed regret that some schools, especially those in deprived areas in the region, scored zero percent in last year's BECE and appealed to teachers to redouble efforts to help the students to achieve higher grades in subsequent years.

Mr. Manu-Yeboa urged candidates to comport themselves well and follow laid down rules and regulations that govern the examination. "The BECE is the main foundation to determine your future", he stated and asked the candidates not to let their nine years in acquiring basic education to go waste," he said.