…tackling mobilisation delays
Abuja: The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brig.-Gen. Olakunle Nafiu, says the scheme is intensifying measures to safeguard corps members nationwide.
Nafiu disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja, while addressing concerns over security, kidnapping and welfare of corps members.
He described security as a national challenge, noting that NYSC operated within a broader system and relied on statutory security agencies for intelligence and protection.
“We are not a security agency, but we work closely with the police, military and intelligence community to ensure our corps members are safe,” he said.
According to him, the scheme maintains constant engagement with security agencies, especially during orientation exercises when large numbers of corps members are mobilised across the country.
He said security agencies were formally notified ahead of orientation programmes, with camps reinforced and personnel deployed to provide adequate protection.
Nafiu added that in some cases, corps members travelling to orientation camps were escorted by security operatives along designated routes to ensure safe passage.
“You may be interested to know that in some locations, corps members are escorted by troops because authorities are aware of their movement,” he said.
The director-general said the scheme also adopted preventive measures, including relocating orientation camps from areas considered vulnerable to security threats.
He said in 2025, NYSC relocated camps in Kwara and Kebbi states as part of proactive efforts to enhance safety.
“We do not deploy corps members to places where we do not have our own staff presence or where security reports are unfavourable,” he said.
Nafiu acknowledged public concerns over kidnapping incidents involving young Nigerians, including former corps members, saying such cases were often misunderstood.
He clarified that a widely reported kidnapping case involved an ex-corps member who had completed service more than two years before the incident.
“We verified from our records that the individual served between 2022 and 2023 and was no longer under the scheme at the time,” he said.
Nafiu said in spite of such clarifications, the scheme remained sensitive to public perception and the emotional toll on affected families.
He said NYSC continued to adopt proactive strategies to mitigate risks, including sustained sensitisation of corps members on personal security.
The director-general advised prospective corps members and corps members to adhere strictly to travel advisories, particularly avoiding night journeys across the country.
“They should break their journeys once it is 6 p.m. and pass the night at safe locations such as military formations, police stations or NYSC facilities,” he said.
Nafiu urged corps members to maintain regular communication with trusted family members while travelling, rather than sharing their movements on social media.
“They should update a trusted person regularly about their location for safety purposes, instead of exposing themselves online,” he said.
He also dismissed reports alleging that NYSC compelled corps members to sign undertakings absolving the scheme of responsibility for their safety.
According to him, such claims are false, misleading and unsupported by any official documentation within the scheme.
“There is no such policy; if it existed, corps members would have shared evidence widely, but there is nothing like that,” he said.
Nafiu said NYSC prioritised the welfare of corps members through provisions such as health insurance and medical support under government-backed schemes.
He said that corps members were covered under the National Health Insurance Authority, with additional financial support provided for critical medical cases when necessary.
“We have paid substantial medical bills, running into millions of naira in some cases, because we value the lives of these young Nigerians,” he said.
Nafiu reaffirmed that the scheme would continue to work with relevant authorities to strengthen security and protect corps members across the country.
He added that NYSC remained committed to ensuring that participants carry out their national service in a safe and supportive environment.
Meanwhile, Nafiu says the scheme is addressing delays in corps mobilisation through reforms and stakeholder engagement.
Nafiu disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja, noting that the delays were caused by multiple factors.
He said many of the challenges were outside the direct control of the scheme, particularly issues related to corps producing institutions and data management processes.
“It is not a single factor; delays often come from late uploads by institutions and errors in the data submitted to us,” he said.
According to him, the expansion of tertiary institutions has significantly increased the volume of graduates awaiting mobilisation, thereby complicating coordination and processing.
He said that from about 10 institutions at inception, Nigeria now had more than 120 universities, polytechnics, and monotechnics feeding graduates into the NYSC annually, with some other graduates coming from institutions abroad.
Nafiu explained that institutions often delayed uploading graduates’ details due to internal administrative processes, including result approvals and attempts to batch submissions.
He added that inconsistencies in candidates’ data, especially name variations, also contributed to delays during verification with government databases.
“We rely on data from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board and National Identity Management Commission, so when there are discrepancies, the system flags errors which must be corrected by the individuals concerned,” he said.
The director-general said funding constraints also affected mobilisation, as the scheme operated within an annual budget tied to a fixed number of corps members.
He said that while about 650,000 graduates were projected for mobilisation, government approval currently covers 400,000 for the service year, but that upon intervention the Federal Government added 50,000 to the number for 2026.
“In spite of these constraints, we are engaging government and institutions to improve the process and reduce waiting time for prospective corps members,” he said.
Nafiu said that the scheme had restructured its pre-mobilisation process, including mandatory training workshops for student affairs officers in tertiary institutions.
He said the workshops were designed to improve understanding of mobilisation procedures and reduce errors in data submission by institutions.
“We discovered that some of them do not fully understand the process, so we now use the workshops to train and guide them,” he said.
He added that institutions were now required to notify NYSC promptly when there were changes in student affairs personnel to avoid disruptions.
Nafiu cited a recent instance where five institutions failed to upload students’ data due to changes in personnel, affecting mobilisation timelines.
He said the scheme intervened by extending deadlines and engaging the affected institutions to ensure that students were not unduly disadvantaged.
The director-general also addressed concerns over difficulties experienced during online registration by prospective corps members.
He said the transition to digital registration since 2014 was aimed at improving efficiency and ensuring accurate data capture through biometric verification.
Nafiu explained that prospective corps members were required to complete registration at accredited centres, where their biometrics and photographs were captured.
He acknowledged complaints about network challenges and delays at registration centres, attributing them to infrastructure limitations beyond NYSC control.
He, however, said the scheme was working on reforms to make the process more seamless, including plans to enable remote registration from home.
“When such issues arise, we respond by extending registration timelines and engaging our technical partners to resolve them quickly.
“Our goal is to reach a point where prospective corps members can complete registration from their homes without the need for physical presence,” he said.
He added that ongoing digitisation efforts in the education sector, including centralised academic data systems, would further enhance the mobilisation process.
Nafiu reaffirmed NYSC’s commitment to reducing delays, improving user experience and ensuring a more efficient mobilisation system for Nigerian graduates and that the scheme would continue to evolve its processes to meet growing demands and align with technological advancements in public service delivery.
On corps members’ allowance, he said that the recent increase in corps members’ allowance reflected government’s commitment to their welfare amid economic realities.
According to him, the increase from N33,000 to N77,000 is guided by policy tied to the national minimum wage.
He explained that corps members’ allowance was not arbitrarily fixed but derived from the minimum wage benchmark plus an additional percentage.
The director-general, however, said that allowance alone should not define corps members’ welfare, stressing that employers were expected to complement government efforts.
According to him, states and Places of Primary Assignment (PPAs) are encouraged to provide additional support, including stipends, accommodation, and other basic needs.
“Some states pay, and PPAs are expected to support corps members in terms of accommodation and welfare, but complaints persist that many do not do enough,” he said.
He said the scheme had begun addressing such concerns through its state coordinators.
Nafiu also highlighted challenges around postings, noting that many corps members rejected assignments, especially in rural areas, in favour of urban areas.
He said some corps members deliberately sought rejection from their assigned PPAs, contrary to the objectives of national service.
“A number of them do not want to teach or serve in rural areas. Some even plead with employers to reject them so they can relocate to cities,” he said.
The NYSC boss explained that deployment was based on national needs and available opportunities, not strictly on graduates’ course of study.
He added that rural postings offered opportunities for skill development and community impact that many corps members overlooked.
“Most believe opportunities are only in urban centers, but in rural communities, they can build capacity and acquire skills that will be useful later,” he said.
He reaffirmed NYSC’s commitment to improving corps members’ welfare, equitable deployment, and national integration in spite of evolving challenges
