The Nigeria Customs Service has commenced preparations for its 2026 basic training programme for new recruits with a specialised retreat for trainers drawn from various disciplines.

The retreat, held in Ikeja, Lagos, brought together instructors responsible for drill, medical services, security, sports and other components of the Service’s training programme. 

Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, said the initiative was part of a new approach designed to bring trainers together under one platform rather than having different units operate independently.

Represented by the Assistant Comptroller-General in charge of Human Resource Development, Frank Onyeka, Adeniyi urged the trainers to work collectively and review the training modules to ensure that the new recruits receive effective and coordinated instruction.

“If you don’t work like a team, you will not get the desired results. Working in silos will not give us what we want, but if you come together as a team, it is a natural answer,” he said. 

The Customs chief also urged heads of the various training units to take responsibility for their respective areas while remaining receptive to ideas and contributions from other trainers.

He said no individual or unit had a monopoly on knowledge and advised participants against dismissing the views of colleagues.

“To deliver this process and to get the desired results, all of us must work as one,” Adeniyi said.

The Comptroller-General recalled his own experience as a trainer in 2008 and 2009, noting that some of the officers trained during that period had progressed through the ranks and were now serving as Assistant Controllers.

According to him, the success of those officers was partly linked to the collaborative approach adopted by their trainers at the time. 

Adeniyi explained that the Customs Service previously conducted trainer preparation in separate segments, with different resource persons and instructors meeting participants at different times.

He said the new arrangement was designed to eliminate fragmentation, promote a common understanding of the training objectives and ensure that all instructors worked towards the same outcome.

The approach, he added, would also save time and improve coordination ahead of the commencement of the basic training programme.

Adeniyi tasked the trainers to prepare recruits who would demonstrate discipline, perseverance, calmness and professionalism throughout their service.

The Commandant of the Ikeja Training College, Deputy Comptroller Precious Atah, described the retreat as the first of its kind and urged the trainers to approach the programme with open minds.

The exercise comes as the NCS moves towards its next recruitment cycle following the completion of the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, which produced 3,852 successful candidates from 573,680 applications. 

The Customs Service has said future recruitment will move to an annual cycle, with the 2026 exercise expected to be conducted within one calendar year from advertisement to release of the final list. 

The latest trainer retreat is therefore intended to strengthen coordination and standardisation ahead of the next phase of recruitment and training.