The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has released the final list of successful candidates for its 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, with 3,852 applicants offered appointments across the Superintendent, Inspectorate and Customs Assistant cadres.
Announcing the results during a press briefing on Tuesday, Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale 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.
Adeniyi apologised for the delay in concluding the recruitment process, which began in December 2024, attributing it to the large volume of applications and the rigorous screening procedures adopted by the Service.
According to him, the NCS received 573,680 applications for the 3,852 available positions, representing an overall success rate of 0.67 per cent, or roughly one successful candidate for every 148 applicants.
He explained that all applications underwent multiple stages of screening, including computer-based examinations, verification of credentials against the national identity database and additional checks where discrepancies were identified.
The Comptroller-General said successful candidates would now proceed to physical and medical assessments before a final review by the Nigeria Customs Service Board.
He noted that the Inspectorate Cadre was the most competitive, with 128,604 applications for 367 positions, translating to one successful candidate for every 350 applicants. The Superintendent Cadre recorded 276,995 applications for 1,275 positions, while the Customs Assistant Cadre received 168,081 applications for 2,210 vacancies.
Addressing unsuccessful applicants, Adeniyi said many met the required standards but could not be accommodated because of the limited number of vacancies.
The Customs boss stated that the recruitment exercise complied fully with the Federal Character principle, with all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory represented on the final list.
Each state received 35 Superintendent positions, 10 Inspectorate positions and 60 Customs Assistant positions, amounting to 105 slots per state, while the FCT received 72 positions in line with the applicable allocation formula.
On gender representation, Adeniyi disclosed that women secured 839 of the 3,852 positions, representing 21.8 per cent of the intake. He noted that women accounted for 21.2 per cent of total applications, meaning their share of successful placements slightly exceeded their share of applicants.
He said female applicants had a marginally higher overall success rate than male applicants, particularly in the Inspectorate and Customs Assistant cadres, although the Superintendent Cadre remained more competitive for women.
Adeniyi attributed the overall gender distribution largely to the nature of available positions, explaining that about 85 per cent of the vacancies were in physically demanding enforcement and operational roles such as anti-smuggling patrols, border operations and field examinations.
He added that the Service would intensify efforts to attract more qualified women into enforcement roles in future recruitment exercises.
The Comptroller-General said the median age of successful candidates is 26 years, with nearly three-quarters of the intake under the age of 30, describing the recruitment as a strategic investment in a younger workforce capable of adapting to technology-driven customs administration.
He also acknowledged that a high rate of retirement among senior officers had placed pressure on the Service’s administrative capacity during the recruitment exercise.
To address future manpower needs, Adeniyi announced that the Nigeria Customs Service would henceforth conduct recruitment annually.
He said the 2026 recruitment exercise would commence later this year and would be completed within a single calendar year, from advertisement to publication of the final list.
According to him, the screening systems and verification processes developed during the current exercise would significantly reduce future delays.
He warned successful candidates to rely only on official NCS communication channels and reiterated that recruitment into the Service is free.
Anyone demanding payment for recruitment assistance, he said, should be reported to the Nigeria Customs Service and relevant security agencies.
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