Delta makes progress as govt sensitises youths on military recruitment

Delta State government has intensified efforts to encourage youths in the state to enlist in the military and paramilitary services, a move that is beginning to yield positive results despite lingering fears among many young Nigerians about the risks associated with military careers.

The renewed campaign, driven by the Delta State Orientation Bureau and other stakeholders, is aimed at changing the negative perception among youths who often view enlistment in the armed forces as a dangerous venture due to ongoing security challenges in the country.

To address the concern, the government embarked on widespread sensitisation campaigns at the grassroots level, highlighting the benefits and opportunities available in the military, paramilitary organisations and the police force, while urging qualified youths to take advantage of the state’s recruitment quota.

Governor Sheriff Oborevwori further demonstrated commitment to the initiative by constituting a special awareness creation committee tasked with sensitising youths across the state on the need to consider careers in the military and related services.

Members of the committee visited various local government areas where they engaged council officials, traditional rulers and community stakeholders to mobilise young people and encourage them to participate in recruitment exercises.

The sustained advocacy efforts produced a milestone in 2025 when the state, for the first time in decades, successfully filled its quota in the 89th Regular Recruitment Intake into the Nigerian Army during the screening exercise held in Asaba.

A total of 200 successful recruits of Delta origin drawn from the state’s 25 local government areas emerged from the exercise, with 100 of them escorted by military officials and representatives of the state government to Zaria for training.

ALSO READ: Borno explosions: We won’t succumb to fear — Tinubu

Other recruits were also accompanied to Osogbo in Osun State to commence their training, while another batch of 135 candidates, comprising 118 males and 17 females, who participated in the Nigerian Army 90th Regular Recruitment exercise earlier this year, were escorted to training centres in Zaria, Jaji and Osogbo.

The Director-General of the Delta State Bureau for Orientation and Communications, Dr. Fred Latimore Oghenesivbe, attributed the growing interest among youths to sustained awareness campaigns carried out across the state over the past three years.

According to him, more than 3,000 Delta youths have either being enlisted or commissioned into various arms of the armed forces through regular recruitment exercises, direct short service commissions and admissions into the Nigerian Defence Academy.