Disregard advert for Foreign Ministry Recruitment – Spokesperson

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has asked Nigerians to disregard recruitment advert making the rounds that it was offering jobs in Nigeria’s diplomatic missions abroad.

This was disclosed by the Ministry’s Spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa in a press conference addressed in Abuja last week.

Ebienfa informed that recruitment of foreign service officers was done by the Federal Civil Service Commission and not the ministry.

According to him, “We want to put on record that the ministry doesn’t recruit officers directly, not at all. Recruitment of foreign service officers is done by the Federal Civil Service Commission and not by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs”, he said.

He noted that the scam started with online advertisements falsely signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs then graduated to the scammer sending fake employment letters to unsuspecting Nigerians.

“One of the fake messages reads: ‘We are pleased to inform you that your application has been considered for diplomatic services at the Embassy of Nigeria in Juba, South Sudan to take effect 12 May 2025.

“It even directs candidates to pay N165,800 for a diplomatic passport”, he said.

The Spokesperson maintained that, “this did not emanate from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“There is no way you will be recruited into the Nigeria Diplomatic Service without going through the process of training, which is the Foreign Service Academy”.

He clarified that all recruits into the Foreign Service go through a clear and formal process with recruitment by the Federal Civil Service Commission and training at the Foreign Service Academy, then eventual deployment abroad.

“The first deployment is one year of attachment. Subsequent postings last three years”, he explained.

Ebienfa therefore warned that no Nigerian should believe any job offer claiming to be directly from the ministry, or pay for a diplomatic passport.

“Diplomatic passports are free. Even official passports for civil servants are free. So, nobody should fall victim”, he said.

He revealed the scammers were using the names of top officials of the ministry, including his own to swindle unsuspecting Nigeria’s of their money:

“They are sending out emails with my name as the signatory. This is not just about fake news. It is about protecting Nigerians from losing their hard-earned money and protecting the name of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs” he said.