Rwanda: Over 7,000 to Retake National Exams After Mass Cheating

What the report says

Rwanda’s Ministry of Education has ordered 7,188 primary school candidates to retake the 2025/26 Primary Leaving Examinations after investigations found widespread cheating. According to the reporting published by The New Times via AllAfrica, the malpractice was identified in 254 examination rooms across the country, and officials said some of it was organized with help from adults responsible for supervising the exams.

The ministry said the affected pupils had initially faced the possibility of having their results cancelled, which is a standard response to exam fraud. It later decided that the circumstances justified a second chance, citing fairness and the learners’ future. The retake is scheduled for September 2 to 4, 2026, and the National Examination and School Inspection Authority, known as NESA, is expected to issue the timetable, exam centers and further instructions.

Education Minister Joseph Nsengimana had said earlier that the number of cheating cases was the largest ever reported in Rwanda’s national exams. Results for the suspected candidates had been withheld while investigators reviewed the case. The ministry said it will work with NESA, parents, schools and local authorities to keep disruption low and that anyone found to have organized, enabled or taken part in the cheating could face accountability.

The broader context is that the affected pupils were part of a much larger national exam cohort: 286,579 students sat the Primary Leaving Examinations, and NESA reported an 82.2% pass rate.