Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, has suggested extending the required National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) program from one year to two years, with a greater emphasis on the corps members’ skill acquisition and entrepreneurship development (SAED).
Dr. Alausa proposed the idea during a courtesy visit to Abuja by Brigadier-General Olakunle Akinyemi Nafiu, the NYSC’s Director-General.
The Minister also suggested sending additional graduate instructors to underprivileged rural areas, according to a statement posted on the NYSC’s official Facebook page. He pointed out that taking such step will assist in addressing the shortage of personnel in schools situated in isolated regions.
Alausa praised the digitisation of NYSC’s mobilisation process, which aims to reduce certificate forgery, particularly among foreign-trained graduates in the West African area. He also commended the scheme’s management for their proactive actions.
He also commended the Corps for resolving the long-standing issue of OND part-time graduates with full-time HNDs being excused from the national service program.
The Minister also disclosed that the government was aiming to digitally verify Nigerian graduates with overseas training. He gave his word that the NYSC and the Federal Ministry of Education will keep working together to raise the national educational bar.
“You have done so well as an organisation. Let NYSC give people more opportunities to become job creators that will meet the needs of the country,” he stated.
In his remarks, the NYSC Director-General, Brigadier-General Nafiu, applauded the Ministry’s reforms and innovative strides in the education sector. He called for the creation of a comprehensive database of Nigerian students studying abroad, adding that it would assist the government and other stakeholders in verifying credentials and eliminating fake graduates.
READ ALSO: Hyenas Almost Mauled Me in Kidnappers’ Den – Ex-NYSC DG Recounts Ordeal
“NYSC is ready to comply with policy guidelines as directed by the Federal Government. We are also trying to reform the Scheme to conform with the present national needs,” he said.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education, Mr. Abel Olumuyiwa Enitan, pledged the Ministry’s commitment to supporting NYSC in its mandate to improve education and national development.
The Minister’s proposal marks a significant shift in the structure of the national service scheme, which has operated as a one-year mandatory programme for Nigerian graduates since its inception in 1973.
