Pretoria: Umalusi has reassured the public that the integrity of the 2025 National Senior Certificate (NSC) results remains intact, despite a confirmed leak affecting 40 learners across three subjects. Umalusi [Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training in South Africa] CEO, Dr. Mafu Rakometsi, emphasized that after extensive quality assurance processes and an independent investigation, the quality council can assure South Africans of the authenticity of the results, reflecting learners' genuine performance.
According to South African Government News Agency, Rakometsi addressed the media regarding exams conducted by the Department of Basic Education (DBE), the Independent Examinations Board (IEB), the South African Comprehensive Assessment Institute (SACAI), and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). The CEO outlined the comprehensive quality assurance framework applied to all examinations overseen by Umalusi, which includes moderating question papers and school assessments, auditing examination readiness, monitoring writing at selected centres, participating in marking discussions, verifying marking quality in certain subjects, and standardising marks across over 300 subjects.
Rakometsi explained that the Assessment Standards Committee (ASC) of Umalusi standardised the 2025 external examination results between 18 December 2025 and 5 January 2026. The 15-member committee spent considerable time carefully analysing numerical data and narrative reports to arrive at standardisation decisions by consensus for each of the over 300 subjects presented. Observers from 11 national and international organisations also scrutinised the process, confirming that while systems differ, the quality assurance processes converge around ensuring the highest credibility and integrity of the certificates issued.
On 11 December 2025, the Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube, informed the nation of a breach involving mathematics Papers 1 and 2, physical sciences Papers 1 and 2, and English home language Papers 1 to 3. A National Investigation Task Team (NITT) of nine members, with Umalusi as an observer, was appointed to investigate. The NITT's report, presented to Umalusi's Executive Committee on 6 January 2026, concluded that the leak was limited to the three subjects or seven papers and contained to around 40 candidates in seven examination centres in the Pretoria area.
Rakometsi commended the Department of Basic Education (DBE) for its quick action but expressed concern over ongoing irregularities like group copying, highlighting that some provinces frequently appear in reports of these issues. He urged provincial departments and private assessment bodies to tighten their systems to protect the overall credibility of the examinations. Umalusi reminded learners that the law empowers it to cancel certificates if irregularities are discovered later.
The council condemned practices like gatekeeping, which prevent learners from writing certain subjects to improve schools' pass rates. Umalusi praised interventions by the DBE to curtail this. It also expressed regret that some candidates fell victim to social ills, such as rape and robbery, during the examination period and urged community members and relevant authorities to support all victims.
Umalusi chairperson, Professor Yunus Ballim, approved the release of the 2025 end-of-year exam results, stating there were no systemic irregularities affecting exam integrity. Over one million candidates sat for exams in more than 300 subjects at approximately 9,400 centres, with the NSC accounting for 90.3% of those, or around 927,000 candidates. Ballim noted a high acceptance of raw marks, indicating a stable system. In a heartfelt message to the Class of 2025, the Professor acknowledged all participants in a large and complex system that meticulously processes over a million scripts, ensuring the integrity of the process is maintained. He encouraged those who failed not to give up, urging, "Work harder, and you will do better in this year's examinations."