The Nigeria Customs Service has released the final list of successful candidates for its 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, with 3,852 applicants making the cut from 573,680 applications.
The successful candidates were announced following the conclusion of the recruitment process, which the Service described as rigorous and transparent.
The Nigeria Customs Service has released the final list of successful candidates for its 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, with 3,852 applicants selected from 573,680 applications.
Announcing the outcome at a news conference on Tuesday, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, said the scale of the exercise and the Service’s commitment to a transparent process accounted for the delay in releasing the final list.
“The volume alone was extraordinary: the Service received 573,680 applications for 3,852 places. Every one of those applications had to be received, verified and assessed,” he said.
Adeniyi said every successful candidate underwent multiple stages of screening, including application screening, a computer-based examination and verification of credentials against the National Identity Database.
He noted that the recruitment was highly competitive, with only about 0.67 per cent of applicants making the final list.
“The competition was severe. From 573,680 applications, 3,852 candidates were selected. That is roughly one place for every 148 applicants,” he said.
According to the Customs boss, the successful candidates span the Superintendent, Inspectorate and Customs Assistant cadres, with all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory represented in the recruitment.
Adeniyi also said the exercise produced a relatively young intake, with the median age of successful candidates standing at 26 years.
He added that 839 women, representing 21.8 per cent of those recruited, made the final list, noting that female applicants recorded a slightly higher success rate than their male counterparts.
Meanwhile, the customs boss encouraged unsuccessful applicants not to lose hope, saying many met the requirements but could not be accommodated because of the limited vacancies.
“You were not rejected; you were unlucky in a field of extraordinary competition. There were simply not enough places,” Adeniyi said.
He also announced that the Nigeria Customs Service would henceforth conduct its recruitment exercise annually, urging prospective applicants to prepare for the next opportunity while warning the public against recruitment fraud.
“Recruitment into the Nigeria Customs Service is free. Anyone who solicits payment on our behalf is a criminal and should be reported,” he added.