NYSC National Headquarters in AbujaCorps members during swearing-in ceremony at a NYSC Orientation Camp
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is a mandatory, post-tertiary scheme set up by the Nigerian government during the military regime of Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, to "reconstruct, reconcile and rebuild the country after the Nigerian Civil war".[1] There is no military conscription in Nigeria, but since 1973, graduates of universities and polytechnics have been required to take part in the National Youth Service Corps program for one year.[2] This is known as the "national service year". Ahmadu Ali served as the first Director-General of the NYSC until 1975.[3] The incumbent Director-General is Brigadier General Yusha'u Dogara Ahmed.[4]
Major General Suleiman Kazaure was appointed director general of the NYSC on 18 April 2016 and served as the 17th DG of the scheme until his redeployment to the Nigerian Army Resource Centre on 26 April 2019.
History
NYSC was created on the 22 of May 1973 during the general Yakubu Gowon regime as an avenue for the reconciliation, reconstruction, and rebuilding of the nation after the civil war. It was established based on decree No. 24, which stated that the scheme was created "with a view to the proper encouragement and development of common ties among the youths of Nigeria and the promotion of national unity".[5]
Operation
Corps members (participants in the National Youth Service Scheme and colloquially called 'corpers') are posted to states other than their state of origin, where they are expected to mix with people from different ethnic group, social and family backgrounds, and learn the cultures and traditions of the indigenes in the location they are posted to. This action aims to foster national unity and appreciation of other ethnic groups in the country.[6]
Orientation Camp
Nigerian youths who are eligible for service are expected to register on the NYSC portal to be called up for service. After a successful registration, eligible graduates get their green card and call-up letter, which indicates their state of service. When called up, they are usually referred to as "PCMs" (a short for 'prospective corps members').
The PCMs are then expected to proceed to their various states of posting for registration and the orientation camp exercise, which is the first phase of the service year.
The "orientation" period is approximately three weeks (21 days) and is spent in a regimented "camp" away from family and friends. The camps are situated across the 36 states of the federation.[7] During the first week of the orientation camp the PCMs are sworn in and then referred to as Corps members. There is also a "passing out ceremony" at the end of the three weeks orientation camp, after which corps members are posted to their various Place of Primary Assignment (PPA). They are expected to work as full-time staff at their PPA with the exception of one working day devoted to the execution of a community development service popularly called CDS. After eleven months at their PPA, corps member are allowed 3 weeks of vacation before their final passing out ceremony, where they would be issued certificates of completion.[8]
Allowance
NYSC Corp Members are entitled to a monthly allowance that stems from the National Minimum Wage. The Corps Members receive a monthly stipend which is equal to the National Minimum wage and an additional 10% of the Minimum wage. In 2024, following the announcement of the new minimum wage of 70,000 Naira by the President,[9] a new allowance was also approved for the Corps Members, bringing their monthly stipend to 77,000 Naira.[10] The previous allowances were 33,000 Naira and 19,800 Naira, all based on the previous minimum wages.
Eligibility for service
To be eligible to participate in the compulsory one year service, a graduate must be below or not above the age of 30 years upon graduation, or else he/she will be given a Certificate of Exemption, which is also equivalent to the NYSC Discharge Certificate. A graduate who graduated before 30 years but skipped the service year will still be eligible since his graduation certificate was dated before he clocked 30 years of age. NYSC is compulsory in the sense that the graduates of the country can't request an exemption by themselves unless they are disabled, have served in the military or paramilitary for a period of more than one year or are older than 30 when they graduated. Part-time graduates (CEP) are given exemptions since they're not allowed to serve.[11]
Requirements for registration
Prospective corps members should have a valid and functional email address and Nigerian (GSM) telephone number to register. A correct J.A.M.B and matriculation number is also required for locally trained graduates. Foreign-trained prospective corps members should ensure that their institutions are accredited. Also, if they trained in non-English speaking countries, they are expected to translate their certificates to English before uploading. It is also important to note that registrations by proxy are not allowed as every participant would be required to undergo biometrics screening.[12]
Merit
Nigerian graduates are ineligible for employment in governmental establishments (and most private establishments) until they have completed the mandatory one-year service or obtained the relevant exemptions. Graduates exempted from the service include those over 30 years and those with a physical disability. During the service year, corps members can acquire new entrepreneurial skills and also learn the cultures of the state they serve in.
Objectives of the Program
The objectives of the National Youth Service Corps Program are enumerated in Decree No.51 of 16 June 1993 as follows:
To inculcate discipline in Nigerian youths by instilling in them a tradition of industry at work and of patriotic and loyal service to Nigeria in any situation they may find themselves.
To raise the moral tone of the Nigerian youths by allowing them to learn about higher ideals of national achievement, social and cultural improvement
To develop in the Nigerian youths the attitudes of mind acquired through shared experience and suitable training. Which will make them more amenable to mobilization in the national interest
To enable Nigerian youths to acquire the spirit of self-reliance by encouraging them to develop skills for self-employment
To contribute to the accelerated growth of the national economy
To develop common ties among the Nigerian youths and promote national unity and integration
To remove prejudices, eliminate ignorance, and confirm firsthand the many similarities among Nigerians of all ethnic groups
To develop a sense of corporate existence and common destiny of the people of Nigeria.
The equitable distribution of members of the service corps and the effective utilization of their skills in the area of national needs
That as far as possible, youths are assigned to jobs in States other than their States of origin
That such a group of youths assigned to work together is as representative of Nigeria as possible
That the Nigerian youths are exposed to the modes of living of the people in different parts of Nigeria
That the Nigerian youths are encouraged to eschew religious intolerance by accommodating religious differences
That member of the service corps are encouraged to seek, at the end of their one-year national service, career employment all over Nigeria, thus promoting the free movement of labor
That employers are induced partly through their experience with members of the service corps to employ, more readily and permanently, qualified Nigerians, irrespective of their States of origin.[13]
Criticisms
The program has been met with criticism from a large portion of the country and complaints from Corps members about their remuneration.[14] A few youth carrying out the NYSC program have been killed in the regions where they were sent due to religious, ethnic or political violence.[15][16]
Besides security issues, many [17][18] have questioned the continued importance of the program and have called for a dialogue in this regard.[19] Preemptive measures must be taken to avoid future incidents of violence. The integrity and nobility of the program must be upheld by addressing the aforementioned issues. Recently, there was a call for the NYSC to be scrapped. The bill was sponsored by Hon Awaji-Inombek Abiante, who listed insecurity in the country, the incessant killing of corpsmembers, and the inability of firms to retain corps members after service due to the failing economy as some of the reasons why the NYSC should be scrapped.[20] This call for the scrapping of NYSC has been met with mixed feelings. While some past leaders are against the scrapping of it because its gains outweigh its losses, some Nigerians feel the scheme has lost its use and should be scrapped to avoid endangering the lives of innocent Nigerians to insecurity and unnecessary one-year stress.[21][22]
^Marenin, Otwin (1990). "Implementing Deployment Policies in the National Youth Service Corps of Nigeria". Comparative Political Studies. 22 (4). London: SAGE Publishers: 397–436. doi:10.1177/0010414090022004002. S2CID154677894.
