The 5,000 teachers shortlisted for recruitment into Rivers State public schools have commenced documentation in Port Harcourt, signalling progress in the state government’s efforts to address manpower shortages in the education sector.
The newly recruited teachers, who are expected to teach in senior secondary and basic schools across the state, were notified of the exercise through text messages sent to their mobile phones.
Documentation for senior secondary school teachers began on Monday at the Rivers State Senior Secondary Schools Board, while those recruited for basic schools commenced the process on Tuesday at the Rivers State Basic Education Board, Elechi Beach, Port Harcourt.
Their recruitment comes about eight months after they underwent computer-based tests at Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, followed by oral interviews at the Obi Wali Conference Centre a few months later.
The teachers were initially expected to resume duty at the beginning of the current academic session. However, the delay in completing the recruitment process meant they could not meet that timeline. The state government has yet to publicly explain the reasons for the delay.
The exercise marks the second major teacher recruitment initiative by the administration of Governor Siminalayi Fubara. Earlier in the year, the government enlisted 1,000 teachers whose recruitment process had originated under the immediate past administration of Nyesom Wike.
The first batch had undergone interviews about four years ago, but their recruitment was suspended amid the political crisis that engulfed Rivers State from October 2023.
While the teachers eventually secured employment under the Fubara administration, a separate recruitment exercise involving 10,000 candidates shortlisted for employment into the state civil service was cancelled.
Governor Fubara reportedly justified the cancellation on the grounds that many of the shortlisted candidates were above the stipulated age limit. However, the decision also generated speculation that the exercise was affected by the political rivalry between the governor and his predecessor, with suggestions that some of the beneficiaries were nominees of Wike’s supporters. Such claims, however, remain unsubstantiated.
The latest teacher recruitment drive followed the state’s return to democratic governance after a period of emergency rule. During the political crisis, the state government was placed under emergency rule in March 2025, with President Bola Tinubu appointing Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.) as sole administrator. The emergency rule was lifted in September 2025.
The need to recruit additional teachers had also been raised in the Rivers State House of Assembly, which drew attention to staffing gaps in public schools and the need to strengthen teaching and learning across the state.
With the documentation exercise now underway, attention will turn to the completion of the process and the deployment of the teachers to schools across the state.
Their eventual resumption is expected to help address teacher shortages, although the impact will depend on how effectively the government distributes the new recruits to schools with the greatest manpower needs.
