Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced a landmark shift in its recruitment policy, declaring that future hiring exercises will be conducted annually rather than at irregular intervals, a move that Comptroller-General of Customs Adewale Adeniyi says will end the years-long uncertainty faced by job seekers and create a predictable pipeline for replacing retiring officers. Adeniyi made the announcement on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, during a press briefing at the service headquarters in Abuja, where he also released the final list of successful candidates for the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, which attracted 573,680 applicants for just 3,852 available positions—a success rate of just 0.67 per cent.
Speaking to journalists, Adeniyi explained that the Customs Service had moved away from a recruitment model under which applicants had to wait several years before another opportunity became available. He said the new structure would make recruitment a continuous process, with the 2026 exercise expected to commence later this year. "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 declared. "The 2026 Recruitment Exercise will open later this year, and it is my firm intention that it will be completed within a single calendar year, from advertisement to final list".
Adeniyi acknowledged the frustration caused by the prolonged 2024/2025 recruitment process, which took more than two years to complete, and offered a sincere apology to the hundreds of thousands of applicants who had waited for the outcome. "This exercise has taken longer than any of us intended. On behalf of the service, I must offer my sincere apologies to every applicant who has waited, and to the parents and guardians who waited with them," he said. He attributed the delay to the sheer scale of the exercise, the painstaking verification process adopted by the service, and a wave of retirements among senior officers that stretched its administrative capacity.
The Comptroller-General revealed that the service received 573,680 applications for 3,852 vacancies spread across three cadres: 1,275 positions in the Superintendent Cadre, 367 in the Inspectorate Cadre, and 2,210 in the Customs Assistant Cadre. The figures highlight the intensity of competition for federal government jobs, with only one out of every 148 applicants securing employment. Competition was even fiercer for the Inspectorate Cadre, where 128,471 applicants contested just 367 positions, translating to roughly one successful candidate for every 350 applicants. By comparison, the Customs Assistant Cadre recorded one successful applicant for every 76 candidates. Despite the intense competition, Adeniyi insisted that the recruitment process was never compromised, stressing that the final list was produced strictly on merit after rigorous scrutiny. Every shortlisted candidate underwent multiple layers of assessment, including application screening, computer-based examinations, and verification of credentials against the National Identity database. "Where a record did not reconcile, we went back and checked it again," he said.
The Comptroller-General sought to reassure unsuccessful applicants that many met the required standards but lost out simply because available positions were limited. "You are not rejected. You are unlucky in the field of extraordinary competition. Many of you met every requirement that we set. There were simply not enough spaces," he said. He noted that the recruitment also reflected the service's adherence to the federal character principle, with each of Nigeria's 36 states receiving an identical allocation of 105 positions—35 for the Superintendent Cadre, 10 for the Inspectorate Cadre, and 60 for the Customs Assistant Cadre—while the Federal Capital Territory received 72 positions.
Adeniyi explained that the annual recruitment model would benefit both the service and prospective applicants by improving workforce planning and reducing uncertainty among young Nigerians seeking employment. The approach would enable the service to anticipate manpower gaps arising from retirements and other exits instead of waiting until shortages occur before recruiting. "An annual cycle serves the Service and the applicant equally. It allows us to plan our manpower against known retirements rather than in reaction to them," he said. He added that the new system would also provide clarity for unsuccessful applicants by allowing them to prepare for future opportunities without prolonged uncertainty. "And 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 stated.
The Comptroller-General urged successful candidates to await official communication from the service regarding physical and medical screening while warning members of the public to disregard fraudsters demanding payment for employment. He reiterated that recruitment into the Nigeria Customs Service remains free and advised anyone approached for money in exchange for employment to report such individuals to the service and relevant security agencies. The announcement came as the Nigeria Customs Service officially released the final list of successful candidates for the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, bringing to a close a nationwide process that began in December 2024. The shift to an annual recruitment cycle marks a significant institutional reform for the service, which is expected to improve border security, trade facilitation, and revenue generation by ensuring a steady pipeline of qualified personnel.
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