South Sudan’s Ministry of Education has announced that 13,678 registered students will sit for the South Sudan secondary school examination scheduled to take place on 27 June at 101 testing centers across the country.

Last year 18,050 students registered for the examination, according to an announcement made last October by Education Minister John Gai. That figure is 4,372 higher than this year’s registration, a drop of 24%.

Explaining the difference, the secretary-general of the examination council, Lul Ruai Dhol said due to the crisis in the country the number of the students going to sit for this year’s exam has dropped compared to the previous years.

Speaking in news conference on Tuesday at his office, Ruai said 1,351 internally displaced students at the camps inside the United Nations bases across the country have been registered and will sit for the test.

According to the official, examination centers have not yet been prepared at refugee camps in neighboring countries where many students have fled.

But Ruai pointed out that 153 students from the Republic of Sudan have been registered to sit for the South Sudan secondary school examination in Yida refugee camp of Unity state.