The Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has announced that only 5,000 applicants will be recruited in the first phase of the ongoing security services recruitment exercise, despite more than 500,000 Ghanaians applying for the opportunity.Addressing the media in Parliament, the Minister said a total of 506,618 applications were received before the recruitment deadline closed, describing the overwhelming interest from Ghanaian youth as a strong indication of their willingness to serve the country.However, he explained that limited government capacity and the country’s economic situation meant that only 5,000 recruits could be absorbed in the first phase.According to him, after the initial screening process, fewer than 30,000 applicants were disqualified due to documentation and other related issues, leaving over 400,000 qualified candidates to proceed to the aptitude test and medical examination stage.The Minister further revealed that the government raised the aptitude test pass mark from 50 to 65 in an attempt to reduce the number of candidates to match the available slots. Despite this measure, about 105,000 applicants still qualified to proceed to the medical examination stage.Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak empathised with applicants who may not make it in the current recruitment phase and assured them that they would have another opportunity in the next recruitment exercise.He noted that the government intends to retain data from the 2025 recruitment process to support the planned 2026 recruitment exercise, particularly when the country exits the programme with the International Monetary Fund.“Hopefully when we are out of the IMF programme, we will do the 2026 recruitment exercise. We will pick from the same 2025 recruitment data. If it is within six months, applicants may only need to repeat the medicals instead of restarting the entire process,” he said.The Minister added that the government remains committed to ensuring a transparent recruitment process and selecting individuals with high professional and ethical standards for the various security services.While acknowledging the disappointment among many applicants, he stressed that the challenge was largely due to unemployment pressures rather than the security sector itself, assuring that more opportunities would be created as the economy improves.The Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has announced that only 5,000 applicants will be recruited in the first phase of the ongoing security services recruitment exercise, despite more than 500,000 Ghanaians applying for the opportunity.Addressing the media in Parliament, the Minister said a total of 506,618 applications were received before the recruitment deadline closed, describing the overwhelming interest from Ghanaian youth as a strong indication of their willingness to serve the country.However, he explained that limited government capacity and the country’s economic situation meant that only 5,000 recruits could be absorbed in the first phase.According to him, after the initial screening process, fewer than 30,000 applicants were disqualified due to documentation and other related issues, leaving over 400,000 qualified candidates to proceed to the aptitude test and medical examination stage.The Minister further revealed that the government raised the aptitude test pass mark from 50 to 65 in an attempt to reduce the number of candidates to match the available slots. Despite this measure, about 105,000 applicants still qualified to proceed to the medical examination stage.Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak empathised with applicants who may not make it in the current recruitment phase and assured them that they would have another opportunity in the next recruitment exercise.He noted that the government intends to retain data from the 2025 recruitment process to support the planned 2026 recruitment exercise, particularly when the country exits the programme with the International Monetary Fund.“Hopefully when we are out of the IMF programme, we will do the 2026 recruitment exercise. We will pick from the same 2025 recruitment data. If it is within six months, applicants may only need to repeat the medicals instead of restarting the entire process,” he said.The Minister added that the government remains committed to ensuring a transparent recruitment process and selecting individuals with high professional and ethical standards for the various security services.While acknowledging the disappointment among many applicants, he stressed that the challenge was largely due to unemployment pressures rather than the security sector itself, assuring that more opportunities would be created as the economy improves.