'Changes Will Empower Nigerian Youths' - Tinubu Defends NYSC Reforms

‘Changes Will Empower Nigerian Youths’ – Tinubu Defends NYSC Reforms
New framework introduces specialised training and civilian leadership.
FG will amend the NYSC Act to implement the reforms.

President Bola Tinubu has defended his administration’s far reaching reforms of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), describing the changes as a major step toward equipping young Nigerians with practical skills, improving their employability and positioning them as key drivers of national development.

In a post on his official X account on Wednesday, Tinubu said the reforms approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Monday represent the most significant overhaul of the NYSC since its establishment in 1973.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the President said the reforms fulfil a promise he made during his inauguration to create meaningful opportunities for young Nigerians and ensure they play a central role in his administration.

“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,” Tinubu said.

“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.”

Tinubu noted that while the NYSC has promoted national unity for more than five decades, changing national realities require the scheme to serve a broader purpose.

“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.”

Under the new framework, the six week orientation programme will begin with civic responsibility, leadership, national values and personal development before moving to career readiness, entrepreneurship, financial and digital literacy, and specialised training based on each corps member’s academic background and career interests.

The specialised streams will cover agriculture, education, health, technology, law, public service, infrastructure, the green economy, enterprise, the creative industry, and paramilitary and security services.

Tinubu also announced measures to improve the safety of corps members, stating that deployment to security challenged states would be based on risk assessments and would prioritise indigenes, residents, graduates of institutions in affected states and those from neighbouring states within the same geopolitical zone.

He added that the call up process would become technology driven, while primary assignments would be aligned with each corps member’s skills and career path.

The President further disclosed that the NYSC would now be headed by a civilian Director General supported by three Executive Directors, including one from the military or paramilitary responsible for security. He also said orientation camps would be assessed under a national grading framework, while the traditional Passing Out Parade would be replaced with a graduation ceremony.

Tinubu said he had directed the Federal Ministry of Youth Development and the Federal Ministry of Justice to begin the process of amending the NYSC Act to provide legal backing for the reforms.

He also commended the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, Special Adviser on Policy Coordination Hadiza Bala Usman, the Federal Ministry of Education and members of the reform committee for their contributions.

'Changes Will Empower Nigerian Youths' - Tinubu Defends NYSC Reforms — ‘Changes Will Empower Nigerian Youths’ – Tinubu Defends NYSC Reforms

Addressing Nigerian youths, the President said, “This nation believes in you. We are building a country worthy of your talent, your ambition and your future.”