FG Reveals Plan to Overhaul NYSC

By Hajara Abdullahi

The Federal Government has unveiled a framework to reform the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

This was disclosed by the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, during a stakeholders’ consultative forum on the NYSC reform held on Tuesday in Abuja.

According to Olawande, the draft framework aims to modernize the scheme by prioritizing skills development, strengthening governance, integrating digital innovation, and improving post-service opportunities for corps members.

“We must recognize that the scheme needs to move with the times. While NYSC management has made significant efforts, there is still a lot of work to be done. Many corps members are posted to offices unrelated to their academic training, and this limits their contribution to key sectors where their skills are most needed,” the minister said.

Olawande added that the reforms will also address lingering issues such as corps member rejection, welfare gaps, and the weak alignment between the NYSC and job creation, emphasizing that youths should leave the scheme as employers of labour rather than job seekers.

“We don’t want corps members to leave NYSC and start hunting for jobs again. We want to create a system where they can access credit, build their businesses, and fully apply the skills gained during and after service,” he added.

Speaking at the event, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination, Hadiza Bala, said the NYSC reform represents a national commitment to redesigning one of Nigeria’s oldest youth institutions.

She noted that although the NYSC has for over 50 years symbolized unity and national integration, it must be reinvented to remain relevant in a rapidly changing world, adding that the current structure is overstretched, outdated, and does not align with labour-market realities.

Bala further stated that the NYSC Act, last updated in 1993, no longer reflects the digital era or Nigeria’s economic priorities, hence the need for the overhaul.