Following the closure of the recruitment portal, 1.9 million Nigerians have applied for the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire, and Immigration Services recruitment exercise. The application figures, accumulated for close to a month, represent the high rate of unemployment and the continued search for jobs in Nigeria.
According to information obtained from the CDCFIB application portal, a total of 1,911,285 applications were received during the process, which ran from Monday, July 14 to Sunday, August 10, 2025, representing one of the highest and far more than the 573,000 applications received during the Nigerian Customs recruitment exercise early this year.
Specifically, the highest number of applicants was received from Kogi State, with 116,174, while Kaduna State followed closely with 114,546 applications. Others in the top 5 states are Benue (110,577), Kano (89,381) and Niger (79,537). Moreover, the top 10 states, including Kwara, Katsina, and Oyo states, saw a total of 877,670 applicants, representing 46% of the total applications received.
At the other end, Bayelsa State recorded the fewest applicants nationwide with 11,669, closely followed by Lagos State with 14,216. Others are Rivers (22,210), Ebonyi (23,603) and Delta (27,964). In all, the least 10 states, including the FCT Abuja, saw 283,222 applicants, representing 14.8% of total applications received.
During the confirmation of the online portal closure, the CDCFIB noted that notification will be sent to shortlisted candidates for the next stage and encouraged applicants to closely monitor their email and text messages.
“Shortlisted candidates will be contacted shortly with further instructions. Please monitor your email and text messages over the coming weeks for notifications. We also encourage you to regularly check the portal and social media handles for important updates,” the statement reads.
While the CDCFIB didn’t disclose the number of jobs available across the four parastatals, the recruitment exercise is expected to be a survival of the fittest, considering the number of applications received.
WHAT APPLICANTS SHOULD DO NEXT
Following the closure of the recruitment portal, applicants are expected to remain vigilant and beware of fraudsters aiming to bank on the ongoing recruitment process.
Last week, the board warned applicants to disregard news of already shortlisted candidates. Referring to a viral email orchestrated by fraudsters demanding N1,250 consultancy clearance for job selection as contained in the fraudulent message, the board noted that the recruitment process is free of charge and genuine communications are only through its official social media channels.
The recruitment process is expected to include a CBT exercise for shortlisted candidates, a screening exercise and a final shortlist for successful candidates who will be employed into the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Fire Service (FFS), and the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS).