Our Correspondent |15 March 2018
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has charged states government on the need to renovate and upgrade facilities in their various orientation camps and the provision of accommodation for serving corps members.
Director-General of NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Sulaiman Kazaure, made the call on Wednesday in Calabar during the 2018 NYSC/Corps Employers Workshop.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the theme of the event was “Tackling Emerging Challenges in Youth Corps Administration Through Greater NYSC/Stakeholders Participation.
Kazaure, who was represented by the Cross River Coordinator of the Scheme, Mrs Eniola Ambekemo, said the NYSC had consistently sensitised states government on the need to upgrade orientation camps.
He said that such renovation and upgrading of camp facilities would provide adequate comfort for the increasing population of corps members during orientation programmes.
He explained that the workshop was held to strengthen the mutual capacity between the NYSC and corps employers and to also identify areas of challenges and proffer solutions.
“Some of the major challenges currently faced by the scheme include; corps rejection, under-utilisation, evasion of service as well as inadequate welfare provisions for the corps members such as accommodation and transport allowance.
“The NYSC management on its part has made giants strides in the areas of corps welfare by consistently sensitising state government on the need to upgrade orientation camps for the comfort of corps members during orientation programmes.
“We have also been undertaking advocacies to ensure that states and local government provide corps lodges”, he said.
Mr Asu Okang, the State Commissioner for Sport and Chairman of the State NYSC Governing Board, said that the state government has the highest number of corps member in its service.
According to Okang, the security and welfare of all corps members serving in the state was of utmost importance to the state government.
“Corps members have been an essential part of the state’s workforce and any forum that provides an opportunity to deliberate on ways of improving corps members productivity is a welcome development”, he said.
One of the participants, Mr Benjamin Okon, called on the federal government to increase the monthly allowance of corps members.
Okon said that the N19,800 allowance was no longer realistic in view of the current nature of the country’s economy.
Other speakers at the workshop also called on government Ministries, Department and Agencies to shun the rejection of corps members posted to them.
Participants at the workshop include; representatives from the Navy, Army, Federal Road Safety Corps, private employers of corps members and others.
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