Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved a comprehensive reform of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), marking the first major review of the scheme in its 53-year history.
As part of the reform, the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Ministry of Youth have been directed to amend the NYSC Act and its regulations to enable the immediate implementation of the new framework.
The new structure will place the operational leadership of the NYSC under a civilian, while the military will continue to provide security for corps members nationwide.
Speaking on the reform, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman, said, “There was a need for us to intervene to build the present ambition of a $1 trillion economy by repositioning the NYSC as a civilian-led, skill-oriented, productivity-driven, and youth-empowering national institution.”
She added, “These, we need to strengthen the human capital development to enhance the workforce that is needed for us to promote and align with our national development.”
According to Bala Usman, the orientation camp will now include two weeks of civic and leadership training, followed by two weeks of career development, financial literacy, business planning, access to finance, and a structured career day programme.
She explained that the final two weeks will focus on specialised training based on the corps member’s chosen stream, academic background, and skill profile.
The government has introduced 11 streams, including Agric, Medical, Education, Tech and Digital, Legal, Public Service, Infrastructure, Green, Enterprise, Creative Economy, and Paramilitary and Security Corps.
She said, “Each corps member, once he’s in, once he has uploaded and he has been recognised and accepted as a corps member, he’s required to pick one of those corps,” adding that specialised training will follow the selected stream.
Bala Usman described the initiative as a bold reform by President Bola Tinubu, saying it would equip Nigerian graduates with practical skills while supporting the government’s goal of building a $1 trillion economy.
