FG set to commence comprehensive personnel audit, skill gaps in federal civil service

The Federal Government has announced that it will commence a comprehensive personnel audit and skills gap analysis across the federal civil service before the end of this month of August.

Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Walson-Jack disclosed on Friday at a “Quarterly Stakeholders and Citizens Engagement Forum” in Abuja.

She also disclosed at the event that more than 34,000 federal workers across the country have now been assigned official government email addresses to enhance secure and efficient communication in line with the ongoing reforms in the public service.

She noted that the reform journey is guided by the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 (FCSSIP25), which is now in its final phase. The FCSSIP25 will conclude on 31st December 2025.

She disclosed that many achievements have been recorded through the ongoing reform initiatives, cleaning up of the human resource data to automating key processes to building capability and improving welfare, maintaining that FCSSIP25 has been the roadmap for transforming the Civil Service into a world-class institution.

The Head of Service revealed that the personnel audit was in compliance with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive a few months ago on the need to ensure that right people are given right roles for enhanced service delivery in the country.

“With Mr. President’s approval, we are embarking on a comprehensive Personnel Audit and Skills Gap Analysis across the federal civil service. This transformative exercise – which is set to commence this August  will ensure we have the right people in the right roles,” she stated. 

Walson-Jack added that the exercise would enable government identify skill gaps, redundancies, and needs which would determine whether to recruit or retrain where necessary, saying President Tinubu himself reiterated at the International Civil Service Conference (ICSC) 2025 the importance of this audit and urged all stakeholders to prioritise its timely completion.

“The data gathered will inform strategic decisions to build a high-performing, agile, and responsive Civil Service for Nigeria,” she said.

Speaking on the 34,000 federal workers across the country who have now been assigned official government email addresses to enhance secure and efficient communication, Walson-Jack added that the introduction of official government emails forms part of a broader push to digitalise operations, improve transparency, and create a smarter government.

She revealed that her office is also migrating records and services to the 1-Government Cloud platform powered by Galaxy Backbone, under the Nigeria First Initiative in IT.

“In line with our goals, we are on track to achieve full digitalisation of core processes by December 31, 2025,” she said, adding that the reforms are already changing public perceptions of the civil service.

Walson-Jack noted that Nigerians are beginning to believe in the civil service again, with growing confidence that it is becoming more responsive to citizens’ needs.

She stressed that sustaining this renewed trust would require continuous engagement with the public through forums, the media, and civil society consultations.

Mrs. Walson-Jack also announced plans to introduce eco-friendly electric staff buses to provide safe and comfortable transportation for civil servants, alongside sustaining initiatives that honour outstanding public servants as part of entrenching a merit-based culture.

“This forum is designed to foster honest dialogue, shared problem-solving, and collective ownership of the reforms that will reshape our civil service for the better,” she said.

“When the public sees a government that listens and partners whose contributions are valued, confidence in our institutions grows,” she stated.

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