Igbawase Ukumba in lafia 

The Director General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brig.-Gen. Olakunle Nafiu, has commended the governors of the 36 states of the federation for the upward review of the allowances for corps members serving in their respective states.

The DG gave the commendation at the 2025 Batch-B Pre-Orientation Workshop with stakeholders held in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital.

He said that the renewed interest by the governors had helped towards creating an enabling environment for the corps members to serve with ease.

“I am particularly happy that several states are now paying due attention to our orientation camps, with some going ahead to either enhance or resume payment of monthly stipends to youth corps members.

“I make bold to say that the government and good people of Nasarawa State have been outstanding in their support to the NYSC and I thank Gov. Abdullahi Sule for taking our relationship to another level entirely,” the NYSC DG added.

Nafiu also lauded the Federal Government for the recent review of the allowances of corps members and the continued funding of the NYSC scheme.

He noted that the timely release of funds for the smooth operation of the scheme had helped them to continue to equip corps members with discipline, spirit of patriotism, and skills to contribute to nation-building during their service year.

The DG added that the Federal Government had kept faith with the scheme and had demonstrated it through the implementation and support of youth-friendly policies and the recent upward review of the allowances of corps members.

On the essence of the engagement, Nafiu said that the Pre-Orientation Workshop served as a platform for the NYSC management and other key stakeholders to review the previous exercise to improve the upcoming camp.

“We will review the challenges faced during the last orientation exercise to enhance our performance in the upcoming exercise,” he added. 

The DG further said that the scheme holds the exercise periodically to ensure the continuous improvement of the orientation course content to equip the corps members adequately for the enormous task of nation-building.

“We have carefully selected, ‘Maintaining the Integrity of the Orientation Course in the Face of Competing Interests’ as the theme for this workshop and we believe its relevance cannot be overstated. 

“It reminds us of our shared responsibility to protect the orientation programme from negative influences while enhancing its positive impact on our corps members and the nation as a whole,” he added. 

Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State represented by his deputy, Dr Emmanuel Akabe, in his remarks, thanked the management of the scheme for the workshop.

Sule stated that NYSC is more than just a programme, “it is a cornerstone of our collective aspirations, supported by all stakeholders”. 

“We must continue to provide unwavering support to the scheme, building upon its myriad achievements across all sectors of national economic development,” he added.

The governor promised to support the robust effort of the DG towards enhancing the revenue based of the scheme to improve the efficiency of the training and mentorship to the corps members.

“In Nasarawa State, my administration places significant emphasis on youth development through skills acquisition, vocational and technical training, and the nurturing of agro-entrepreneurs. 

“The vocational centre stands as a testament to our commitment which offers corps members valuable opportunities for growth.

“We are dedicated to infrastructural development, creating an enabling environment for our youth to thrive in different sectors of the economy,” Sule added. 

The workshop had in attendance military personnel, other security agencies, traditional rulers and other stakeholders involved in the orientation programme of the NYSC.

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