Orphanages across Nigeria have praised the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Oluwatosin Adeola Ajayi, for recruiting 27 qualified orphans from diverse professional backgrounds into the Service. They described the ongoing initiative as a compassionate gesture that will transform lives and create opportunities for vulnerable young Nigerians.

The commendation came from orphanage administrators and child welfare advocates, who said the recruitment offers deserving young Nigerians who grew up without parental care a rare opportunity to contribute to national development while building meaningful careers in the country’s security sector.

According to them, the initiative has been life-changing for many of the beneficiaries. Speaking on the development, the Director of Holy Child Motherless Babies Home, Holy Ghost, Enugu North, Enugu State, Rev. Sister Antonella Okeke, said, “Having been raised in orphanages with limited prospects, the chance to serve in the DSS is something I never imagined possible.”

She added that the recruitment has given the beneficiaries not only employment but also a renewed sense of identity, purpose, and belonging.

Similarly, the Administrator of Margaret Garba Orphanage/Less Privilege Home in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, Rufina Edache Ejembi, described the Director-General’s decision as a powerful statement that no Nigerian child should be left behind, regardless of their background or family circumstances.

The administrators called on other government institutions and private organisations to emulate the DSS by creating similar employment opportunities for qualified young people raised in orphanages across the country.

One of the administrators described the initiative as “highly commendable” and said it reflects the agency’s commitment to building a more inclusive and compassionate institution—one that looks beyond privilege and circumstances to recognise talent and potential wherever it exists in Nigerian society.