Guyana’s students have delivered a strong showing in the 2026 Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) examinations, with improvements recorded in both CSEC and CAPE
Preliminary results released yesterday show that the national CSEC pass rate increased from 66 per cent in 2025 to 67 per cent in 2026, while the CAPE pass rate rose from 91.9 per cent to 94.6 per cent.
The results were announced during an official ceremony hosted by the Ministry of Education, where Education Minister Sonia Parag joined Chief Education Officer Saddam Hussein and Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh in congratulating students, parents, teachers and schools.
One of the highlights of the 2026 results was the performance of Nitya Narine of Tagore Memorial Secondary School, who recorded 26 Grade Ones and one Grade Two at CSEC.
Nitya’s performance represents the highest number of Grade Ones recorded by a Guyanese student in the preliminary 2026 results.
She was followed by Anushka Singh of Queen’s College, with 25 Grade Ones and one Grade Two, while Shreya Ramnarine of Anna Regina Secondary secured 22 Grade Ones, six Grade Twos and one Grade Three.
Other outstanding performers included Joseph Daniel of Bishops’ High with 21 Grade Ones; Jaquel White of Queen’s College with 20 Grade Ones, six Grade Twos and one Grade Three; and Fiaz Danny of Saraswati Vidya Niketan with 20 Grade Ones and one Grade Two.
In total, 264 candidates recorded eight or more Grade Ones, with 78 of those students achieving 12 or more Grade Ones. This represents an increase from 2025, when 59 candidates achieved 12 or more Grade Ones.
The Ministry also highlighted significant improvements at schools across Guyana, challenging the longstanding perception that academic excellence is concentrated only among a small number of traditional schools.
Belladrum Secondary School in Region Five emerged as one of the most striking examples of that progress, recording an overall CSEC pass rate of 93.4 per cent, after generally recording results in the 40 to 50 per cent range over the previous six years.
The school also recorded an 81 per cent pass rate in Mathematics and 75 per cent in English.
Mathematics saw a national improvement, with the pass rate increasing from 32 per cent in 2025 to 34.5 per cent in 2026.
The Ministry attributed the improvement to several interventions, including the Mathematics Tents, online reinforcement classes, teacher training, digital learning and targeted support from education officials.
Several schools recorded particularly significant improvements in Mathematics, including Fort Wellington, which moved from five per cent to 82.15 per cent, Belladrum, which moved from zero to 81.49 per cent, Bartica Secondary, which recorded a 57 per cent increase, and Leguan Secondary, which recorded a 28 per cent increase.
Queen’s College also achieved 100 per cent passes in Mathematics, its first such performance since 2020.
CAPE also produced strong results, with 666 students writing in 2026 compared with 650 in 2025. The number of CAPE entries increased from 3,632 to 3,777.
Twelve students recorded six or more Grade Ones in their CAPE units. David Sogrim of Queen’s College led that group with 11 Grade Ones and seven Grade Twos.
CCSLC
Meanwhile, the newly introduced Caribbean Certificate of Secondary Level Competence (CCSLC) recorded a 99.1 per cent mastery or competency rate among the approximately 100 students who wrote the examination this year. The programme is expected to expand significantly, with approximately 13,660 students projected to sit the examination in 2027.
The Ministry also reported that 2,813 students are expected to receive Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) certification, equipping them with practical skills in areas including agriculture, aquaculture, food preparation, construction, electrical installation, garment making, motor vehicle repairs, welding and cricket pitch management.
Chief Education Officer Saddam Hussein said the 2026 cohort faced particular challenges, having been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and missing most of Form One.
He said that despite those disruptions, Guyana retained 97.96 per cent of the cohort that entered secondary education through the 2021 National Grade Six Assessment.
Parag urged students to view the results as one milestone rather than the end of their educational journey.
“Be hungry for education,” she told students, encouraging them to pursue opportunities through the University of Guyana, the Cyril Potter College of Education, nursing schools, technical institutes and other training programmes.
The Minister of Education cautioned that the results released yesterday are preliminary. Students have until September 18, 2026 to request reviews of their results, meaning the Ministry is not yet declaring any student Guyana’s official top performer.
She said the students recognized should instead be regarded as outstanding performers, with final determinations to be made after the review period and in accordance with CXC’s established criteria.
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