Male candidates performed better their female counterparts in last years' 2012 Senior Six examinations results released, yesterday, by the Ministry of Education.

According to the statistics, there was an increase in the number of females who sat for the examinations for in 2012 compared to the previous year.

The general pass for female candidates increased to 12,846, corresponding to 44.7 per cent in 2012, from 11,770 (42.6 per cent), who passed in 2011.

However, this did not stop the males from dominating in the principle subjects.

Among the 117 best performers countrywide there were only 22 females, representing 18.8 per cent.

In general, males excelled in sciences.

The females performed slightly better in arts subjects such as History, English and Geography, although the males still maintained the lead.

According to Emmanuel Muvunyi, the deputy director-general (examinations) in the Rwanda Education Board, "What is presented to the public is just a sample of the performance for the best candidates and it cannot worry the public."

Muvunyi said this is because if one considered the general pass ratio of boys to girls, the story line is different.

However, the situation remains the same in technical and vocational schools where generally you find one female candidate or none among the top performers in different fields, which includes agriculture, tailoring, mechanics, computer, among others.