Employment Crisis Highlighted As Customs Job Opening Is Oversubscribed

BY FUNMI ALUKO

The prevailing challenge of huge unemployment ratio in the country was recently highlighted when a total of 573,519 candidates applied for a total of 3,927 job openings at the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

According to official statistics, current unemployment rate stood at 14.4 percent as at June 2024. Overall, while unemployment rate remained 4.30   percent as at Jun 2024, youth unemployment rate was captured at 6.50     percent by Jun 2024.

The National Bureau of Statistics revealed that youth unemployment rate in Nigeria decreased to 6.50 percent in the second quarter of 2024 from 8.40 percent in the first quarter of 2024. Youth Unemployment Rate in Nigeria averaged 21.40 percent from 2014 until 2024, reaching an all time high of 53.40 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020 and a record low of 6.50 percent in the second quarter of 2024.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Customs Service said it received 573,519 applications in the just concluded 2024/2025 recruitment exercise carried out online via its recruitment portal, apparently following approval by the Federal Ministry of Finance.

Speaking on the development, the Customs National Public Relations Officer, Assistant Comptroller Abdullahi Maiwada who gave the breakdown of the applications in a chat, said applications were received across board, including school leavers and university and tertiary institutions graduates holding degrees, higher national diplomas and ordinary national diplomas, plus national certificate of education.

His words: “I want to breakdown the number of people that applied, we have two categories of officers, we have the support staff that are professionals, and we have the general duty.

“For the general duty, we have three categories of ranks. For the general duty under the superintendent cadre, we have 249, 218 candidates that applied.

“Under the superintendent cadre support staff cadre, we have 27, 722 with HNDs and University degrees. For the inspector cadres, those expected to apply with their National Certificate for Education, NCE or National Diploma; we have 115, 634 applying for the general duty, and for support staff, we have 12, 952.

“As for the customs assistants, these are those who are supposed to come in with secondary school certificates, there are two categories, those who have basic five credit results with Maths and English, and those without Maths and English. For the general duty we have 153, 593 while the support staff we have 14, 400”, he said.

The NCS has for many years already stood out to fill the gaps in critical national needs, including having transformed into a leading revenue generation organ for the federal government and similar interventions during national emergencies.

The federal ministry of finance recently also identified the important role of the NCS in achieving the 2025 of ₦48 trillion budget cum, ‘Budget of Restoration.’

The Minister of Finance, Mr Olawale Edun, highlighted the NCS’s importance during the 61st quarterly board meeting of the agency held on Wednesday, 18 December, commended for its pivotal role in boosting the nation’s economic recovery.

It will be recalled that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in December singled out the leadership and management of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for its innovative capacity and foresight in keying into his administration’s economic agenda.

The president who was speaking at the Comptroller General of Customs Conference held in Abuja praised the customs service’s doggedness and efficiency, which he acknowledged has helped the government to achieve great results both in the re-engineering and reforms of the economy, and expressed unreserved satisfaction about the fact that the NCS is working and positively impacting national economic reconstruction and governance.

President Tinubu who stated he was delighted to participate and declare the conference open reiterated the resolve of his government to strengthen Nigeria’s economic base and deliver positive growth and development for the benefit of all citizens.

“Central to the success of these economic initiatives is the role of our strategic institutions and their dedicated personnel. Our vision required government agencies to be proactive in aligning their statutory responsibilities with the broader national economic objectives. Agencies needed to demonstrate initiative in identifying opportunities within their mandates that would best serve and advance our national aspirations.

“I am pleased to note that the Nigeria Customs Service is one of the agencies that has risen to this expectation, demonstrating how government institutions can effectively contribute to our economic transformation agenda while fulfilling their core mandates.”

Praising the CGC Adewale Adeniyi and his management team, President Tinubu said, “This alignment is clearly demonstrated in the Service’s comprehensive modernization agenda. In responding to our administration’s call for enhanced trade facilitation and economic growth, the Service has introduced significant reforms including the Advanced Ruling system and the Authorised Economic Operator Program.

“These initiatives, which align with global best practices, show how agencies can innovatively implement solutions that advance our national economic objectives while meeting international standards. Such reforms not only enhance trade facilitation but also create a more predictable business environment that supports our broader economic goals.

“The results of these initiatives across the Service’s core mandates have been encouraging. The Nigeria Customs Service has shown remarkable progress in revenue generation, enhancing government’s capacity to fund critical national development projects. Through strategic reforms, the Service is strengthening Nigeria’s position as a trade-friendly nation, particularly in the areas of export promotion and port efficiency. This has contributed significantly to our improved global ranking in the ease of doing business.

“The Service has also demonstrated that effective trade facilitation can coexist with strong regulatory compliance, as evidenced by its enhanced border security and anti-smuggling operations. These achievements affirm our administration’s belief that public institutions, when properly aligned with national objectives, can effectively drive transformative change”, the president said.