Tinubu Government Plans to Extend NYSC to 2 Years, Read Strong Reason

Tinubu Govt Plans to Extend NYSC to 2 Years

The Nigerian government is considering a bold move that could shake up the country’s youth service programme. The Minister of State for Education, Dr. Yusuf Olatunji Alausa, has proposed extending the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme from one year to two years.

He made the proposal in Abuja during a meeting with NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Yusha’u Dogara Ahmed.

Dr. Alausa believes the current one-year service doesn’t give young Nigerians enough time to learn useful skills or create real impact in society.

He said, “I believe NYSC can do more than it currently does. Extending it to two years will allow corps members to acquire real, useful skills and give back meaningfully to the society.”

This proposed extension is meant to give corps members more time to develop job-ready skills and support manpower gaps, especially in rural schools.

The minister praised the NYSC’s entrepreneurship training programme, known as SAED — Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development. But he said it needs more time and expansion if it’s going to truly help young Nigerians become self-reliant.

He added, “Let NYSC give people more opportunities to become job creators that will meet the needs of the country.”

Dr. Alausa also stressed the need to deploy more graduate teachers to underserved rural communities. According to him, many schools across Nigeria are struggling without enough qualified teachers.

To fix this manpower shortage, he wants corps members posted to places where they can fill these education gaps while gaining teaching experience.

Another major concern raised was certificate racketeering. Dr. Alausa applauded NYSC for improving its mobilization process, especially in exposing fake certificates from graduates who studied outside Nigeria.

He confirmed the Ministry of Education is working on a new digital verification system that would prevent fraud and expose fake degrees, especially within West Africa.

One of the problems NYSC previously faced was how to handle part-time Ordinary National Diploma (OND) holders who later got full-time Higher National Diploma (HND) certificates. Many of them were disqualified from service. But that has started to change.

Dr. Alausa said NYSC deserves credit for taking steps to correct this injustice and include more Nigerians who were wrongly excluded.

In response, NYSC DG Brig. Gen. Y.D. Ahmed said the corps is fully prepared to follow through with any reforms from the federal government.

He stated, “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 present national needs.”

One of his proposals is to build a database of Nigerian students studying abroad. This, he said, would help government agencies easily verify credentials and expose anyone trying to fake their academic background.

The Permanent Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education, Mr. Abel Olumuyiwa Enitan, also spoke. He said the ministry is committed to working closely with NYSC to reform the education sector and ensure the scheme plays a bigger role in national development.

Meanwhile, public debates around NYSC reforms have intensified recently.

A few weeks ago, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, raised concern about how the NYSC treats corps members who speak out on national issues.

Obi had reacted to the case of Ushie Rita Uguamaye, known as Raye, a corps member who used her social media to complain about Nigeria’s economic problems.

According to Obi, the NYSC reportedly threatened the corps member for simply sharing her thoughts