Jubaland, HirShabelle Lead as Candidates Post Strong Exam Results
GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: The newly released 2024-25 national secondary school results highlight an overall strong nationwide performance but with a notable contrast in regional achievement.
Out of 38,471 students who sat for the exams this year, 32,714 passed, marking an 85 percent national pass rate, while 5,757 failed. Education officials hailed the outcome as a positive indicator of progress in the country’s secondary education system.
Regional Breakdown
The data reveals Jubaland and Hirshabelle as the best-performing federal member states, each recording a 93 percent pass rate. Galmudug and South West states followed closely at 92 percent.
In contrast, Banadir, home to the capital Mogadishu, saw an 81 percent pass rate, below the national average. The newly formed North-East state which covers the Sool, Sanaag and Ayn regions, recorded a 74% pass.
Top Students Spread Across Regions
The top ten students nationwide came from five regions, reflecting a broad distribution of excellence. Banadir produced three of the country’s highest achievers, including the overall top scorer, Aisha Adan Ugas Hirsi of SOS School, who earned a 91.99 percent average. South West also had three students in the top tier, followed by Hirshabelle (two students), Galmudug (one student), and Jubaland (one student).
The disparities highlight both the progress and challenges facing Somalia’s education sector. While access and quality are improving, the uneven results point to regional gaps that policymakers may need to address in the coming years.
The first unified national secondary school exams in Somalia were launched in 2015, marking a major milestone in the country’s journey to standardize education. Until then, schools administered exams based on varied foreign curricula, such as those from Kenya, Sudan, and Saudi Arabia, which produced inconsistent standards.
The 2015 rollout initially involved around 7,000 students, under a unified, government-regulated testing system.