- What: NDE RHEI Phase 3, a free skills training and stipend programme, not NDE staff recruitment
- Portal opened: Thursday, July 23, 2026
- Where to apply: nderegistrationportal.ng or nde.gov.ng
- Who’s eligible: mostly ages 18 to 45 (varies by scheme), Nigerian citizens, valid NIN and BVN required
- Not eligible: anyone who already benefited from RHEI Phase 1 or 2
- What you get: free training, monthly stipend, startup support, mentorship, certification
- Target: 26,961 participants nationwide, training expected to begin August 2026
- Closing date: not yet announced, register early
The National Directorate of Employment opened the RHEI Phase 3 portal on Thursday, July 23, 2026. The plan is to train 26,961 unemployed Nigerians for free, spread across all 36 states and the FCT, with a monthly stipend attached while training is ongoing. Training itself is expected to start in August 2026, once registration closes.
Let’s go through what this programme actually is, who can apply, and how to not mess up your registration.
What RHEI Phase 3 Is, In Plain Terms
RHEI is a skills acquisition and empowerment scheme run by NDE, not a recruitment exercise into NDE as an agency. That distinction matters because a lot of people register expecting a “government job” at the end, and end up disappointed. What you’re actually signing up for is free vocational, agricultural, or digital skills training, plus support to either get employed afterward or start something small on your own.
This is the third time NDE is running this particular initiative. If you already benefited from Phase 1 or Phase 2, you’re not eligible this time around. The programme wants to reach new people.
Who Can Apply for this opportunity
The general age bracket for RHEI Phase 3 is 18 to 45, though this shifts slightly depending on the specific scheme you pick. Some agricultural schemes accept applicants as young as 16, while a few business schemes cap out at 35 or 36.
Beyond age, here’s what NDE is actually looking at:
You don’t need a degree for most of the schemes, no wahala. Several of them are built for people with no formal education at all, especially the community-based and apprenticeship-style trainings. Persons with disabilities are specifically encouraged to apply, and there’s a dedicated scheme (PWSN) built around that. You do need to be a Nigerian citizen, have a valid NIN, and have a bank account you can link with your BVN, since that’s how any stipend gets paid.
One more thing worth knowing: selection under RHEI 3 is being done at the ward level in each local government, not just a blanket “first come first serve” at state level. So your chances aren’t only about how fast you registered, but also about how many slots your ward or LGA has been allocated.
The Four Programme Areas
NDE has grouped RHEI Phase 3 training into four departments, and you’ll be asked to pick one when you register.
Rural Employment Promotion (REP) covers agriculture: livestock production, aquaculture, and crop farming, mostly for applicants between 16 and 40.
Small Scale Enterprises (SSE) is for people who want to start or grow a business. This includes the Start Your Own Business scheme for graduates, a women-focused programme covering food processing and beauty services, and a couple of digital freelancing collaborations that teach AI-assisted content marketing.
Special Public Works (SPW) is where graduates get placed as exam coaches for JAMB and WAEC prep, interns attached to companies, landscaping and interlocking work, or solar installation training for those with an engineering background.
Vocational Skills Development (VSD) is the biggest bucket, with schemes covering everything from welding, plumbing, and auto repairs, to digital marketing, tailoring, catering, and craft-based trades like basket weaving and tie-dye. This is also where the open apprenticeship schemes sit, both basic and advanced, for people already working with a master craftsman.
Slot distribution isn’t equal across every scheme, and this is easy to miss. Most get roughly 37 slots per state, but a handful, like the NDE-Kerberos collaboration, have just one slot per state nationwide. If a scheme you’re eyeing has a tiny allocation, it’s fair to also list a backup with wider slots.
What You Actually Get
Training under RHEI Phase 3 is completely free. Beyond that, NDE says participants get:
A monthly stipend during the training period, paid into your verified bank account. Startup kits or seed support for people whose business plans are viable after training. Mentorship from people already working in that trade or industry. A nationally recognised certificate once you complete your training. And in some schemes, direct linkage with employers for job placement afterward.
None of this costs you anything to register for. If anyone asks you to pay money before you can apply, that’s not NDE at all, that’s a scam, no dulling. Report it and don’t send anybody a kobo.
How To Apply, Step by Step
Everything happens on the official portal at nderegistrationportal.ng. You can also reach it through nde.gov.ng.
First, create your NDE client account with a valid email and phone number. Then fill the application form with your personal details and pick your preferred programme department.
After that comes the part most people underestimate: the pre-enrolment assessment. It runs in seven stages, covering your eligibility status, identity verification, bank and BVN details, your preferred programme and scheme, a proximity check for the nearest training centre, age verification, and finally a passport photo upload. At the end, you get a summary page to review everything before submitting.
Once submitted, NDE verifies your documents; your valid ID, passport photograph, highest certificate (where relevant), and BVN. If everything checks out, you get matched to the nearest available training centre based on your state, LGA, and chosen scheme. From there, training begins.
Documents To Have Ready Before You Start
Don’t start the assessment halfway and go searching for these midway, because the portal can time out on you. Have your NIN (11 digits) and BVN (11 digits) written down somewhere. Have your bank account number and the exact name on the account, since it must match your BVN details. And get your passport photograph sorted beforehand too; it needs to be a JPG or PNG, under 500KB, and at least 300 by 300 pixels. A photo straight off your phone camera without resizing will usually fail that check.
When Does Registration Close?
As of now, NDE hasn’t announced an exact closing date for RHEI Phase 3. Based on how the first two phases went, though, the portal typically shuts once the target number of participants per state has registered, sometimes without much warning. If a scheme is important to you, better to register now sha, than wait and meet the slots already filled.
