By ZAKAA LAZARUS
The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adewale Adeniyi, has announced that the Service is transitioning to an annual recruitment cycle in a major policy shift aimed at ensuring predictable and efficient manpower planning.
Addressing journalists at the Service’s Headquarters during the release of the final list of successful candidates for the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, the CG said recruitment into the Service would no longer be conducted at irregular intervals.
“The Nigeria Customs Service is moving to an annual recruitment cycle. Recruitment will no longer be an occasional event undertaken every several years. It will be a standing, predictable, yearly process,” he said.
According to Adeniyi, the 2026 recruitment exercise will commence later this year and is expected to be completed within a single calendar year, from advertisement to publication of the final list.
“It means that a young Nigerian who is unsuccessful this year knows precisely when the next opportunity arrives, rather than waiting in uncertainty for an announcement that may be years in coming,” he added.
The CG explained that the systems, screening architecture and verification processes developed during the just-concluded exercise have now been fully established, making future exercises faster and more efficient.
“The delays of this cycle were in significant part the cost of constructing that machinery. That cost has now been paid,” he stated.
The NCS officially released the final list of 3,852 successful candidates for the 2024/2025 exercise, bringing to a close a nationwide process that began in December 2024.
Breakdown by Cadre:
– Superintendent Cadre: 1,275
– Inspectorate Cadre: 367
– Customs Assistant Cadre: 2,210
Adeniyi said the Service received an unprecedented 573,680 applications for the 3,852 positions. All applicants underwent multiple stages of screening, including computer-based examinations and verification of credentials against the national identity database.
He attributed the delay to the scale of applications and the high rate of retirements among senior management officers.
The CG insisted that the integrity of the process was not compromised, stressing that the final list was produced strictly on merit after rigorous scrutiny.
He also disclosed that every state of the federation and the FCT was represented, with the Federal Character principle fully applied.
