President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday justified the decision of his government to rebrand the 53-year-old National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) as a national development scheme.
The president, in a post on his verified X account, @official ABAT, disclosed that his administration was repositioning the NYSC from a mobilisation scheme into a national development platform for skills, employability, productivity, and enterprise.
Tinubu directed the ministry of youth development and that of justice to fast-track the process of amending the NYSC Act and subsidiary regulations.
He said NYSC will now be headed by a civilian Director-General, supported by three Executive Directors, including a Security Services Executive Director, who will be a military or paramilitary officer.
The president, in the post on X, stated, “On Monday, at the Federal Executive Council, our administration approved the most consequential reforms of the National Youth Service Corps Scheme since its establishment in 1973.
“On the day I was sworn in as your President, I promised to create meaningful opportunities for our young people. I said women and youth would feature prominently in our administration, and this reform is partly the actualisation of that promise.
“For 53 years, the NYSC has served the cause of national unity. That mission remains important and must be preserved.”
He added, “But the Nigeria of today demands more.
“Our young people are nearly 70 per cent of our population. They are not a burden to be managed… They are the engine of the one-trillion-dollar economy we are building and the hope of this nation.
“We are repositioning the NYSC from a mobilisation scheme into a national development platform for skills, employability, productivity and enterprise.
“The NYSC orientation programme will now become a six-week journey.
“It will begin with civic responsibility, leadership, values and personal development. It will then move into career readiness, entrepreneurship, digital and financial skills. Finally, corps members will receive specialised training aligned with their academic background and career pathway.”
The president explained, “These streams will include agriculture, health, education, technology, law, public service, infrastructure, green economy, enterprise, creative economy, and para-military/security service.
“Every corps member must leave NYSC better prepared for work, enterprise and national service.
“We are also making the NYSC Scheme safer and smarter.
“Deployment to security-challenged states will be guided by risk assessment. It will prioritise indigenes, residents, graduates of institutions in those states and those from neighbouring states within the same geopolitical zones.
“The call-up process will become technology-driven and primary assignments will be better aligned with each corps member’s skills, academic background and career stream.”
Tinubu said, “Our administration is also strengthening governance, standards and the dignity of the NYSC scheme.
“The NYSC will be led by a civilian Director-General, supported by three Executive Directors, including a Security Services Executive Director, who will be a military or paramilitary officer.
“Orientation camps will be assessed under a national grading and certification framework, while states will be expected to meet minimum standards.”