The 2026 baccalaureate exam began under tight surveillance in Mahajanga. Authorities deployed significant security measures across forty-one examination centers in the Boeny, Sofia, Melaky, and Betsiboka regions.
To ensure the integrity of the exams, local authorities, coordinated by the Mixed Design Body (OMC) and collaborating with various organizations involved in organizing the baccalaureate, deployed substantial security forces across the forty-one examination centers distributed among the Boeny, Sofia, Melaky, and Betsiboka regions in Mahajanga province.
Numerous law enforcement personnel were deployed to secure the examination centers. The first day of exams proceeded under heavy surveillance without any incidents in the City of Flowers.
The number of registered candidates for this 2026 session in Mahajanga is twenty-six thousand three hundred, including twenty-five thousand one hundred seventy-eight for general education. For technical and vocational education, one thousand one hundred twenty-two candidates are registered in the region. In 2025, the number of registered candidates in the Boeny region was twenty-four thousand seven hundred seventy-three.
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The first exam, philosophy, began as scheduled yesterday morning. Candidate roll call started at 6:30 a.m. at Lycée Philibert Tsiranana and all sites. At Lycée Philibert Tsiranana, forty-seven candidates were absent out of one thousand two hundred sixty registered.
All prohibited items such as mobile phones and containers, including backpacks and bags, were confiscated and placed in a secure location to prevent any fraud attempts. Candidates entered examination rooms with only authorized documents and materials.
Local authorities, including the prefect of Mahajanga, the president of Mahajanga University, and the director of the Baccalaureate Office, attended the official launch of the exam at Lycée Philibert Tsiranana. The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research also sent a representative to Mahajanga.
"The first exam started on time in all 41 centers in the Boeny region. The security measures in place are being respected. All center directors must remain vigilant during the five days of exams. Everyone must stay alert. The baccalaureate exam in Mahajanga is proceeding under high security," urged the president of Mahajanga University.
The oldest candidate is 66 years old and registered at the Mahajanga center. The two youngest candidates are 14 years old, taking the exam at the Mandritsara and Mampikony centers.