The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has announced the release of the final list of 3,852 successful candidates for the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, while unveiling plans to institutionalise annual recruitment to ensure a steady intake of personnel and eliminate prolonged waiting periods.
Speaking during a press briefing in Abuja, Adeniyi said the successful candidates comprise 1,275 in the Superintendent Cadre, 367 in the Inspectorate Cadre and 2,210 in the Customs Assistant Cadre, bringing to a close the recruitment process that commenced in December 2024.
The Customs boss apologised to applicants and their families over the delay in concluding the exercise, attributed it to the unprecedented volume of applications and the Service’s determination to ensure a transparent, credible and merit-based selection process.
According to him, the Service received 573,680 applications for only 3,852 vacancies, making the exercise one of the most competitive in its history.
He explained that every successful candidate passed through rigorous screening stages, including application verification, computer-based examinations and authentication of credentials against the National Identity database before being shortlisted.
Adeniyi noted that the overall success rate stood at just 0.67 per cent, translating to one successful applicant for every 148 candidates. He encouraged the over 560,000 unsuccessful applicants not to lose hope, stressing that many met the required qualifications but could not be accommodated because of the limited vacancies.
The Comptroller-General disclosed that all 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory were represented in the final selection in line with the Federal Character principle. He said each state received 105 slots across the three cadres, while the FCT received 72 positions based on the approved allocation formula.
On gender representation, Adeniyi revealed that 839 women, representing 21.8 per cent of the successful candidates, secured places in the recruitment exercise. He observed that female applicants recorded a slightly higher success rate than their male counterparts and pledged that the Service would continue to encourage more qualified women to pursue careers in customs enforcement.
He also described the successful candidates as a youthful workforce, with a median age of 26 years, noting that they would play a vital role in driving the Service’s transition to technology-driven customs administration over the coming decades.
The Comptroller-General attributed part of the delay in the recruitment exercise to the high number of retirements among senior management officers, saying the Service had remained operationally stable despite the transition.
He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his support, as well as the Nigeria Customs Service Board chaired by the Minister of Finance, and officers and men of the Service for sustaining operational efficiency throughout the period.
Adeniyi announced that the Nigeria Customs Service would henceforth conduct recruitment every year instead of waiting several years between exercises.
Responding to questions from journalists, he explained that the digital infrastructure, equipment and verification systems established during the just-concluded recruitment exercise would make future recruitment faster and more efficient.
“By the grace of God, we are not going to be starting from ground zero. The infrastructure, equipment and IT systems required to drive future recruitment are already in place,” he said.
He explained that the current wave of retirements mainly affected senior officers who have spent between 30 and 35 years in service, making it necessary to replenish the workforce continuously from the entry level.
“The exits we are talking about are not in the lower cadre; they are at the upper echelon of the Service. We are bringing in young people to begin their careers in the Nigeria Customs Service, and when those at the top retire, others will have risen through the ranks to replace them,” he stated.
Describing the annual recruitment plan as practical and sustainable, Adeniyi said the Service would continue to liaise with relevant government agencies, including the Federal Character Commission, to obtain the necessary approvals for each recruitment cycle.
He disclosed that the 2026 recruitment exercise would commence later this year and expressed confidence that, with the systems now in place, the process would be completed within a single calendar year—from advertisement to the publication of the final list.
The Customs boss urged successful candidates to monitor only official Nigeria Customs Service communication channels for further instructions on physical and medical screening, warned that recruitment into the Service remained free and that anyone demanding payment for employment should be reported to the appropriate authorities.
