116,616 make it to grade 10

A total of 116,616 candidates who sat for the 2018 grade nine examinations have made it to grade to grade 10.

This represents 45.64 percent of all candidates that wrote the exams.

Announcing the results at a media briefing in Lusaka Acting Minister of General Education Elizabeth Phiri disclosed that a total 255,449 sat for the exams.

Ms. Phiri says the 45.65 percent pass rate for the 2018 candidates represents a 9.54 decrease in percentage points from 2017.

She states that indicated that, all the 116,616 candidates who obtained full certificates have been selected to Grade 10 of which 56.27% are boys and 54.06% are girls.

Ms. Phiri further says, the highest performance was recorded in Design and Technology while the lowest performance was recorded in business studies, religious education and mathematics.

The Acting Minister of General Education notes that a total of 29, 074 candidates representing a 10.22 percent national absenteeism rate were absent from the examination of whom 13,932.

She says this represents 9.83 percent were boys and 15,142 representing 10.60 percent were girls.

Meanwhile Ms. Phiri says results of 78 candidates who sat for the exams have been withheld for suspicion of examination malpractices.

She has told journalists that investigations have been instituted in them, further warning offenders of exam malpractice of stiff punishment.

And Examinations Council of Zambia (ECZ) Director Michael Chilala has reiterated the Councils commitment to ensuring that results are released on time.

Dr. Chilala has also disclosed that the examination system will undergo major reforms starting in 2019 to ensure continued integrity of the system.

The candidates who have made it to grade 10 are expected to report in their respective schools on the 14th of January 2019.