The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced a major shift in its recruitment policy with the adoption of an annual recruitment cycle, a move aimed at ensuring predictable, transparent and efficient manpower planning.
The Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed this on Tuesday while addressing journalists at the Service’s Headquarters during the release of the final list of successful candidates for the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise.
Adeniyi said recruitment into the Service would no longer be conducted at irregular intervals but would become a standing yearly process designed to provide eligible Nigerians with regular opportunities to join the Service.
He disclosed that the 2026 recruitment exercise would commence later this year and would be completed within a single calendar year, from the advertisement of vacancies to the publication of the final list of successful candidates. According to him, the new arrangement would eliminate the uncertainty previously experienced by applicants, as unsuccessful candidates would know exactly when the next recruitment exercise would be conducted.
The Comptroller General explained that the systems, screening architecture and verification processes developed during the just concluded recruitment exercise had now been fully established, making future exercises faster and more efficient. He noted that much of the delay experienced during the 2024/2025 exercise resulted from the effort required to build the necessary recruitment framework, adding that the foundation had now been laid for a smoother process going forward.
Adeniyi also announced the release of the final list of 3,852 successful candidates for the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, bringing to a close the nationwide process that commenced in December 2024.
He said the successful candidates comprise 1,275 officers in the Superintendent Cadre, 367 in the Inspectorate Cadre and 2,210 in the Customs Assistant Cadre.
Giving an overview of the exercise, he disclosed that the Service received an unprecedented 573,680 applications for the 3,852 available positions.
He said all applicants underwent multiple stages of screening, including computer based examinations and verification of credentials against the national identity database, to ensure the credibility and integrity of the recruitment process.
Adeniyi attributed the delay in concluding the exercise to the sheer volume of applications received and the high rate of retirements among senior management officers, which affected the recruitment process.
He maintained that the integrity of the exercise was never compromised, stressing that the final list was produced strictly on merit after rigorous scrutiny.
The Comptroller General further disclosed that successful candidates were drawn from all 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, noting that the Federal Character principle was fully observed throughout the recruitment exercise.
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