Bayelsa State has been honoured with an award of excellence by the National Examinations Council (NECO).

Presenting the award to Governor Douye Diri during the weekly state executive council meeting in Government House, Yenagoa, on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Education, Dr. Gentle Emelah, said the country’s examinations body honoured Bayelsa among other states as part of its 25th anniversary celebrations.

Dr. Emelah informed the council that the state got the award on merit for having the highest percentage of candidates with five credits and above in NECO examinations since its inception.

He noted that by rewarding excellence at the state and institutional levels, NECO reinforced a culture of healthy competition, accountability, and continuous improvement in the education sector.

He explained that the award was not just a recognition of past performance but a call to action for other states and institutions to raise their standards to align with NECO’s broader mission of promoting
quality education and ensuring that assessment outcomes translate into national progress.

Giving a breakdown of the state’s students’ performance in the national examination, he said Bayelsa came first in the country “with the highest percentage of candidates who obtained five credits and above in NECO SSCE (Internal) since inception” of the body.

The state was followed by Ogun State in second position while Edo came third.

Responding, Governor Douye Diri expressed appreciation to NECO for the honour, saying it was a call for more action in the education sector.

He charged the Commissioner for Education to ensure the state maintained the standard as a decline will be unacceptable.

His words: “This is a wake up call to receive this type of award, particularly when you are competing with states that had been there over the years and that are believed to be educationally ahead of you.

“It is a wake up call for you (Education Commissioner) and the ministry that now that Bayelsa has come to the limelight educationally and competitively, we must wake up to the point of no return. I do not want to receive an award like this today and next year we go down. Let it be that we are improving on this.”