The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has assured that corps members who recently completed their service will still receive the arrears of the new N77,000 monthly allowance. This assurance was given by the NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Akinyemi Nafiu, during the 2025 Batch A Pre-Mobilisation Workshop held in Abuja for heads of Corps Producing Institutions (CPIs) and other key stakeholders.
General Nafiu emphasized that the Federal Government remains committed to fulfilling its promises to the corps members. He noted that although the payment of the new allowance began last month—eight months after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed the new minimum wage bill into law—the process for disbursing the arrears is already underway.
“The government is very conscious of its commitment, and within the provisions of the national budget, it will handle the payment of the arrears. Once we receive the necessary cash backing, all eligible corps members, including those who recently passed out of the scheme, will be paid. We already have their bank details and will credit them directly. Nigerians should remain calm and confident in the government’s ability to deliver, as it is both responsible and responsive to their needs,” he said.
In the same vein, the Director of Corps Mobilisation, Mohammed Abubakar, raised concerns about ongoing challenges within the mobilisation process. He specifically highlighted the persistent issue of some tertiary institutions fraudulently uploading names of unqualified graduates for mobilisation. According to him, although significant improvements have been made in recent years through innovation and stronger collaboration, these dishonest practices still pose a major threat to the integrity of the scheme.
“We’ve made great strides in recent years, but there are still serious challenges—chief among them being the fraudulent upload of unqualified graduates. As we prepare for the next batch of mobilisation, we must remain vigilant and proactive in curbing such practices. This process is not just routine; it is fundamental to national development,” Abubakar stated.
Also speaking at the event, the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, called for urgent reform of the NYSC to align it with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the current administration. Reflecting on the original purpose of the scheme, which was established in 1973, the minister noted that Nigeria has evolved significantly since then, and the NYSC must also evolve to remain relevant.
He said, “The NYSC was created to serve a specific purpose, but our society has changed drastically since 1973. Therefore, we must reform the scheme to reflect today’s realities. The NYSC should be positioned to prepare our graduates for the modern job market and economic demands. It must be reshaped to better serve the youth and the nation at large.”
He further stressed that transforming the NYSC is not solely the government’s responsibility, but a collective effort that requires input and support from all stakeholders. “We need a scheme that is inclusive, adaptive, and capable of serving future generations,” Olawande added.
On his part, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, represented by the Mandate Secretary for Youth and Sports Development in the FCTA, Abdullahi Suleiman, pledged continued support for the NYSC. He reaffirmed the FCT administration’s commitment to partnering with the scheme to ensure it achieves its objectives during each service year.
In conclusion, the NYSC leadership, along with other government officials, used the occasion to highlight both achievements and challenges within the scheme, while calling for broader collaboration and reform to strengthen its impact on national development and youth empowerment.
