The National Council on Establishments has ruled that membership of professional associations or possession of professional certifications should not, by itself, be made a compulsory requirement for appointment, promotion or career advancement in the Nigerian public service.
The decision was reached at the council’s 48th meeting held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, from July 20 to 24, 2026.
The meeting, chaired by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, was attended by Heads of Service from states and the Federal Capital Territory, as well as permanent secretaries and other senior government officials.
According to the council, professional memberships and certifications should primarily help public servants maintain professional competence, ethical standards and continuous development.
The NCE, however, clarified that professional certification could still be required where such a condition is specifically contained in an approved Scheme of Service.
It stated, “Professional membership or certification should be recognised principally for professional proficiency, ethical standards and continuing professional development.”
The council added that such membership “should not automatically constitute a condition for appointment, promotion or career progression, except where expressly provided in the approved Schemes of Service.”
The resolution affects public servants working across various professional fields, including accounting, engineering, human resources, procurement, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, teaching, surveying, architecture and law.
The council’s position means that public servants should not be subjected to blanket requirements to belong to professional bodies as a condition for career progression unless the rules governing their particular cadre expressly provide for it.
It also noted that promotion within the public service remains guided by factors such as qualifications, experience, training, performance, competence and the requirements of the relevant Scheme of Service.
The council further considered requests for new cadres and enhanced entry points into the public service.
It approved a Harmonised Entry Point Framework designed to guide decisions on entry points across different cadres, noting that changes to entry levels could have wider financial and administrative implications.
According to the council, “enhanced entry points have significant service-wide, financial and grade-relativity implications.”
Ten memoranda seeking enhanced entry points were referred to its standing committee for assessment, while five others were sent back for further consideration.
The council also deferred five requests for the creation of new cadres pending the completion of a personnel audit and skills-gap analysis being conducted by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
It said the exercise would determine the existing skills within the public service and identify areas where additional expertise was required.
The council stated that the outcome of the exercise “would be germane to the objective assessment of requests for the creation of new cadres.”
Meanwhile, the NCE approved the establishment of two new cadres: Paramedics Assistant, covering Salary Grade Levels 04 to 07, and Paramedics Technician, covering Salary Grade Levels 06 to 14.
The council also called for stronger cooperation among the federal, state and FCT public services to promote uniform standards, professionalism and effective human-resource management.
The meeting marked Walson-Jack’s final session as chairman of the council, with members commending her leadership and contributions to public service administration.
