The Administrative Staff College of Nigeria has trained 578 civil and public servants across the country in the past 100 days.
Director-General of ASCON, Mrs Funke Adepoju, disclosed this on Friday at an event marking her 100 days in office, held at the college’s premises in Badagry, Lagos.
Adepoju explained that the training was aimed at upscaling skills and filling institutional gaps in Nigeria’s public service.
Among the beneficiaries were personnel of the Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Lagos State public service, and Delta State public service.
Others included staff of the National Information Technology Development Agency, Nigerian Communications Commission, Ogun State judiciary, Petroleum Technology Development Fund and Petroleum Trust Fund.
Highlighting the importance of civil and public servants in implementing government policies, Adepoju said the training was also designed to refresh workers to meet the demands of modern governance.
She said, “In these first 100 days, we have moved from paper to practice. In the last 100 days, ASCON has trained about 578 people from around different states and proposals from about seven states seeking to be trained, like Lagos State.
“A nationwide capacity-building needs survey covering all 36 states and the FCT has given us the first comprehensive, post-pandemic picture of skills and institutional gaps in Nigeria’s public service.
“This is already informing our curriculum review, ensuring that our strong base of executive programmes, from public administration and strategic leadership to ethics, fraud prevention, dispute resolution, and administrative competence, is refreshed to meet the demands of modern governance. The new curriculum will integrate emerging competencies such as climate governance, gender responsiveness, and behavioural insights, making ASCON not just current, but forward-looking.”
Looking ahead, Adepoju said the focus would be on consolidating gains and expanding partnerships.
According to her, this aligns with the Federal Civil Service’s plan to fully digitalise its operations by December.
“The next 180 days are about consolidation and acceleration. We need to deepen our private sector and development partner engagement. We will be launching the ASCON sub-national reform intelligence series.
“We will be embedding AI for governance into our offerings, mainstreaming climate change, gender and curriculum, and extending our reach to every state in the Federation,” she added.
Adepoju further said plans were underway to hold capacity-building programmes for public workers in Borno, Delta, Taraba and Adamawa States.
She also spoke on the importance of embracing digital innovations, revealing that plans were on to embed Artificial Intelligence for governance.
She added that there was a proposal to organise capacity-building programmes for personnel of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The ASCON DG also highlighted partnerships with the Nigerian Institute of Management, the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, and international organisations, all aimed at deepening academic and professional linkages.
The Head of Service of Lagos State, Mr Bode Agoro, who was a special guest at the event, commended Adepoju for repositioning ASCON as a key player in strengthening the national capacity-building ecosystem.
She urged the DG to ensure that ASCON becomes not just a national treasure, driving efficiency and excellence in public institutions, but also an African centre of excellence.
She said, “In just 100 days, what have we witnessed? We have seen an institution re-energised. ASCON’s campus has been transformed into a world-class learning environment, from refurbished reception halls to the reactivation of the ASCON Signature Hotel, from the solarisation of critical facilities to the repositioning of the health centre.
“These are strategic enablers of learning, comfort, and institutional pride.
“She has anchored ASCON’s programmes in evidence, conducting a national survey of capacity-building needs across all states, the kind of data-driven leadership that ensures relevance and precision in service delivery.
“She has re-opened doors to partners at home and abroad, and she has done so with the confidence of someone who knows that reform is a contact sport, requiring both diplomacy and decisiveness.”
Also speaking, the Director of Legislative Studies at ASCON, Dr J.K. Alagbe, described Adepoju as a “workaholic and result-driven director general.”
The event was attended by traditional rulers, community leaders, political office holders and top government functionaries.
