By Stellamaries Amuwa
The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, has urged Corps Members to leverage the Scheme’s Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme to acquire vocational and entrepreneurial skills that will prepare them for self-reliance and productive engagement after their service year.
He also charged them to use the service year as an opportunity to develop their leadership abilities, broaden their experience and contribute meaningfully to national development.
Nafiu gave the charge while addressing Corps Members deployed to Oyo State for the 2026 Batch ‘C’ Stream II service year at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp, Iseyin.
The NYSC boss highlighted the increasing number of graduates mobilised annually by the Scheme, noting that the development had placed additional pressure on its financial resources and existing infrastructure, particularly accommodation, healthcare, transportation and other welfare facilities.
He, however, assured the Corps Members that the NYSC Management remained committed to improving their welfare and providing opportunities for them to acquire skills that would enhance their economic independence.
The Director-General also disclosed that female graduates had consistently outnumbered their male counterparts in the Scheme’s mobilisation figures since 2021, marking a significant departure from the trend that had prevailed since the establishment of the NYSC in 1973.
He explained that male graduates dominated the mobilisation statistics until 2020, when the pattern began to change, with women taking the lead from the following year.
Citing statistics from the NYSC Information and Communication Technology Department, Nafiu said 167,840 female Corps Members were mobilised in 2021, compared with 152,052 males. In 2022, the figures stood at 159,330 females and 143,872 males.
He attributed the shift to improved access to education for women, increased investment in girl-child education and the growing participation of females in tertiary education across the country.
According to him, the trend reflects the impact of sustained interventions by successive governments and international development initiatives, particularly the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which emphasised girl-child education and gender equality.
Nafiu noted that the changing demographic composition of the nation’s graduate population had significant implications for the future workforce, urging policymakers, employers and other stakeholders to take cognisance of the development.
He particularly called for workplace policies and welfare provisions that adequately address women’s needs, including maternity benefits and childcare support.
