Education minister proposes extending NYSC programme to 2 years
By Jeffrey Agbo
Minister of Education, Olatunji Alausa, has proposed extending the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme from its current one-year duration to two years.
Alausa made this suggestion during a courtesy visit by the NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, to his office in Abuja on Friday.
According to a statement shared on NYSC’s official Facebook page, the minister also called for an expansion of the NYSC’s Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme. The proposed extension aims to provide corps members with more comprehensive training to better prepare them for the job market.
“The minister also advocated for the extension of national service from one to two years, with the expansion of NYSC Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development Training programme content for corps members,” the statement read.
He further advocated for the strategic deployment of more graduate teachers to rural schools to address the existing manpower shortage in underserved areas.
The minister praised the NYSC for its digital innovations in the mobilisation process, which have helped tackle certificate fraud, particularly among foreign-trained graduates in West Africa. He also commended the agency for resolving the longstanding issue regarding OND part-time graduates who later earned full-time HND qualifications but were previously exempt from service.
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Alausa emphasised ongoing efforts to digitise the verification process for foreign-trained Nigerian graduates and expressed the ministry’s commitment to strengthening its collaboration with the NYSC to enhance educational development nationwide.
“You have done so well as an organisation,” Alausa said. “Let NYSC give people more opportunities to become job creators that will meet the needs of the country.”
In response, Brigadier General Nafiu applauded the ministry’s reforms in the education sector and proposed the creation of a national database to track Nigerian students pursuing degrees abroad. He noted this would help identify fraudulent academic qualifications.
“NYSC is ready to comply with policy guidelines as directed by the Federal Government. We are also trying to reform the Scheme to conform with the present national needs,” Nafiu stated.
Also present, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Abel Olumuyiwa Enitan, reiterated the ministry’s readiness to work closely with the NYSC to improve the quality of education across the country.
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