‘Renewed Hope’ through a repositioned NYSC scheme

By Dele Olaitan

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Scheme has indeed come of age. It has contributed immensely to national integration and cohesion like no other govt establishment or agency since after the civil war. One hopes that the benefits of the Scheme since inception in May 1973 can be maximized and deeply spread to the grass roots of the nation more than ever before. It is for this very purpose of intended deepening, expansion and strengthening the Scheme’s benefits that this essay is targeted. Nigerians generally and youths in particular are desirous of having their hope in the nation renewed with assured proactive measures. The NYSC has the benefits of statute, acquired field experience and necessary playing field to contribute immensely to the present federal government’s ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda. It can and must assist the initiative with required principled templates built upon socio – cultural and ethical values.

Consequently, in tandem with sections 13, 15 – 18, 20,21, 23 and 24 in Chapter Two of the 1999 Federal Constitution and pursuant to Sect 4 sub (1) (a), (b) and (f) coupled with Sect 5 sub (2) of the NYSC Act, one is constrained to discuss and recommend the following :

Decentralization of management – Introducing Geo – Pol Zones Coordinates.
Concept of a New Nigeria viz:

(i) Leadership building and mentoring in conjunction with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and other relevant agencies or stakeholders.

(ii) National cohesion and integration agenda – National Ambassadors of Unity, of Tradition and Culture, of Progress and Prosperity etc need be created to spur our youths towards higher heights through healthy competitions. Patriotism must be promoted with enthusiasm, passion and zeal. Those Corps members that exhibit these traits must be designated National Ambassadors. They deserve honor and rewards to serve as catalysts for emulation.

(iii) Debunking and demystifying the “Lazy Youths” notion – through the Corpers’ Farm and Industrial Camps (CFI Camps) initiative. This shall target youth empowerment and employment for large scale food production and low cost housing in a ‘Unity Cottage/Settlement’ settings.

(iv) Staff Recruitment and Placement Services Desk/Portal – pursuant to Sect 1 sub (4) (f) and (g) of the NYSC Act.
Post Service Propositions/Projections:
(i). NYSC Hall of Fame – Induction Into.
(ii). Post Service Settlement – in CFI Camps.
Funding – Short term, Medium term and Long term arrangements.
Multi-Purpose Task Force.
A National Guards or National Rangers Para military Force.

Decentralization of Management

For purposes of easier, more effective and efficient administration and control, it is quite necessary that management of the Scheme be decentralized. This is without prejudice to Sections 1, 3 and 4 of the NYSC Act. Rather, the intendments of these sections shall be further served. The best way to do this is by unbundling the National Directorate into six alongside the new concept of Geo – Political zones. With this, the Scheme shall have a Zonal Coordinating Center or Zonal Field Directorate in each geo political zone of the federation. Each ZCC/ZFD shall be headed by a military officer not below the rank of Colonel or equivalent. All states within the zone shall be administered by the DDG designate and State Coordinators taken under administrative command. Zonal DDGs shall be answerable to the DG and the National Directorate of the Scheme.

The ZCC or ZFD shall ensure strict implementation of and compliance with the objectives of the Scheme. It shall engage in monitoring and evaluation activities including feedback processes within its AoR. The NYSC Act might need to be amended so as to include this development. But it should be emphasized that this unbundling is necessary and thus imperative for the successful evolution and sustenance of a New Nigeria that the Scheme is expected to spearhead. The ZCCs or ZFDs shall not only bring the HQ and National Directorate closer to the States but also add impetus to service delivery by breaking administrative bottlenecks.

Concept of a New Nigeria

A New Nigeria is a concept that is speedily gaining ground especially among youths. To fast track the actualization of this dream, the National Youth Service Corps shall play a pivotal role in consonance with its statutory objectives. This is simply because this dream of a New Nigeria is conceptualized upon bringing about the shared values of unity in diversity, peaceful co-existence and abundant prosperity for all. These cardinal objectives are in tandem with those of the NYSC Scheme as clearly expressed vide Sect 1 sub (2) (a) – (c) and sub (3) (a) – (h) of its Act.

A New Nigeria as envisaged essentially belong to the youths. As such, the NYSC shall explore very practical avenues and media in ensuring that not only do youths participate but must actually take charge of and drive the process. To do this, the following are necessary and recommended:
Leadership Building and Mentoring – In partnership with the National Orientation Agency (NOA), the Nigerian tertiary institutions perhaps and other stakeholders as necessary, the NYSC shall create enabling environment for emergence of credible leadership at all levels of our national lives. To this end, keen and healthy competitions that would challenge and bring forth leadership qualities and traits among youths shall be organized. In addition, there must be regular training conferences, seminars and workshops on leadership Corps members. What is key and essential here is COMPETITIVE DEBATES and CATALYSTIC REWARDS.

Examples of challenging competitions are essay writing, public and open air debates including live telecasts or TV Reality Shows, group tasks for achieving particular goals etc. The main theme of the competitions shall be “If I Were…” Hence, “If I Were the LGA Chairman” or “If I Were the Governor”, “If I Were so so Minister”, “If I Were the Principal, Rector, Provost or Vice Chancellor” etc shall feature prominently. Needless saying that worthy rewards must be given to participants as catalyst for sustaining keen interest and boost further participation.

Another theme of challenging competitions is a project that could be tagged “Making a Difference” (MAD). This nation of ours seems to be one of extreme absurdities and profanities. Nothing seems to be unusual or inappropriate hence anything can happen and do happen. Unusual and peculiar problems require equally unusual and very peculiar solutions. Therefore, it is imperative that our youths be encouraged to think out of the box by developing mindsets attuned to “Making a Difference”.

Through this, youths shall be challenged to proffer practical solutions to intractable national malaise and problems, failed and failing national policies and programmes, multi various challenges of development etc. As individuals or in groups, brain storming exercises among youth corps members must be encouraged in the form of healthy, keenly contested and highly rewarding competitions.

Playing Leadership Roles – Youths must be encouraged to not only think and reason like potential leaders that they are, but actually play such roles actively. It is thus quite necessary and very proper to create avenues for youth corps members to act in different leadership capacities during their service period. This acting shall usually be for a fixed period of time not exceeding a week per individual. This translates to having a Youth Corps member as Principal in the school of his primary deployment for a week, acting as the Perm Sec in the ministry for a week, acting as the Manager or CEO of an organization for a week and even as the DG of the Scheme for a week etc. Without doubt, several birds shall be killed with this one stone.

National Cohesion and Integration – This is one of the cardinal objectives of the NYSC Scheme. It can be called and described as its primary and paramount objective. Hence, no effort must be spared in ensuring that it is achieved in order that the Scheme be seen and accepted as resoundingly successful. There is need for more proactive thinking and action in this regard. Cohesion and integration are practical phenomena which must be openly manifested.

The NYSC must build and encourage the enthusiasm, passion and zeal for achieving this all important objective through practical avenues and media. Hence it is recommended that more attention and encouragement be given to cross ethnic marriages; preference and reverence for tradition and culture; recognition, respect for and preparedness to accept or accommodate others etc. Avenues and medium for achieving this include but not limited to creating and sponsoring the following :

National Youth Ambassador Titles – Unlike engaging in such demeaning and less meaningful escapades as “So so so the Ultimate Search” or “This that this Dancing Nothingness” or even the infamous ‘Big Brothel Nonsense’ (BBN) and the likes, youths should be challenged and orientated towards very positive values and virtues of nationalism and patriotism. Hence, competitive TV Reality shows with all necessary glamour and glitz is recommended in this regard. The objective must be the making of very patriotic youths who are proud, dedicated, diligent and highly motivated.

Three categories of competition is envisaged here. This include :
National Youth Ambassador for Unity – Yearly, the most outstanding Corps Member with practically demonstrated sterling qualities for national unity and cohesion should be crowned as the National Youth Ambassador for Unity. Indices should include diverse family background i.e Yoruba mum and Fulani dad, Pry schooling in Lagos, Secondary in Enugu, post-secondary in Sokoto, speaks two or more national languages fluently, a Fulani engaged or married to a Yoruba or Igbo, Christian but has muslim spouse or fiancé etc, etc and readiness to settle outside one’s home zone.

National Youth Ambassador for Progress and Prosperity – This shall be the title given to any Corps Member that possess and exhibit the most verifiable qualities for creating wealth/prosperity through very progressive initiatives and innovations. This is for entrepreneurship.
National Youth Ambassador for Tradition and Culture – The most outstanding Corps Member that have regard and reverence for our traditions and cultural heritage; ever ready to identify with and promote same, practically demonstrates such inclination during service year.
Corpers’ Farm and Industrial Camps (CFI Camps) – This shall be a permanent settlement and place of abode cum employment for interested Corps Members. The NYSC could immensely contribute to the demystification of the “LAZY YOUTHS” concept through this initiative while simultaneously using it as a unifier. Without prejudice to or conflict with the existing Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneur Development (SAED) programme of the Scheme, CFI Camps project shall be an extension of and compliment SAED on a larger and more practical level. This project should cover all the LGAs in the federation on a minimum land holding of 100 hectares each.
For a start, pilot projects of CFI Camps can be undertaken in one LGA per State for a two year experiment. While the SAED serves as the engine room for perfecting the protagonists and drivers of prosperity initiatives, the CFI Camps shall be the field of operations. The CFI Camps shall be operated as follows:

As Cooperative groups of 20 Corps members each yearly per Camp/LGA. Each group owns, operates and manages itself.
As a Small and Medium Entrepreneur Initiative.
As a project funded by govt approved and guaranteed revolving loans.
As a franchise – worker owned business but govt supervised.
As an agrarian and industrial hub – mainly food production/processing/packaging and marketing.
As a rallying ground for genuine and honest unity in diversity – no youth corps member should be allowed to settle in a CFI Camp within his/her geo – political zone of origin.
As a catalyst for rapid economic development, for creating employment opportunities and for mass food production.
As a Housing Estate with unique low cost buildings.

The CFI Camps shall dwell primarily on food crops and herbs or medicinal plants farming. These shall include but not limited to the following:
Grains such as rice, beans, maize, sorghum, millet etc.
Tubers – Cassava, yam (water and coco yam), potatoes etc.
Vegetables/Legumes – Tomatoes, pepper, onions, cabbages, lettuce, water melon, sweet melon, okro, garden eggs, cucumbers etc
There shall also be provision for medicinal plants such as garlic, turmeric, scent leaves, ginger, bitter leaf, morringa, pumpkin etc. These food and herb crops can be easily planted and harvested all year round. Each Cooperative group shall engage in any desired activity from planting to marketing of finished products. Optimal, fulfilling and gainful employment and wealth creation opportunities abound in this initiative if accepted and embraced.

In no time, the Corpers’ Farm and Industrial Camps shall flood our markets with high quality food products. Such shall be branded as CFI Camp cassava chips, CFI Camp cassava flour, CFI Camp industrial starch and ethanol, CFI Camp tapioca, gari and akpu. Others shall include CFI Camp fruit juice, CFI Camp canned egusi soup/tomato sauce, etc. There shall also be noodles of various types and shapes. It is but a matter of time. The value chain involved in this food production track is endless.

Low Cost Housing – Through the CFI Camps or Settlements, the Low Cost Housing concept can be given impetus. Prototypes of housing units built with about 70 – 80% local materials should be constructed and showcased. There are various types of inter locking bricks and other building materials of high quality that could be produced on site. This largely cut costs and reduces time of construction. The inter – locking bricks and roofing sheet making machines can be purchased by the Cooperative groups and made to rotate among them for production. Each Coop group should embrace direct labor methods to assist members build their houses on rotational basis.
Staff Recruitment and Placement Services – Pursuant to Sect 1 sub (4) (f) and (g) of the NYSC Act, the Scheme should establish a Desk or Portal as necessary for this. All MDAs including the military and corporate establishments should be encouraged to seek and source their staff directly from the NYSC. The data base of the Scheme provides a ready high quality caliber of young, employable Nigerians in all fields of endeavor.
Post Service Propositions/Projections:
(i). The NYSC Hall of Fame – Outstanding NYSC Staff and Youth Corps members should be honored with an Induction Ceremony into the NYSC Hall of Fame. This can be a yearly event where recipients or awardees would be given befitting red carpet treatment with corresponding awards.
(ii). Post Service Settlement – This is as in CFI Camps earlier discussed.

FUNDING – This shall be sub divided into Short term, Medium term and Long term arrangements. In the Short Term, funds could be raised through:
Short Term – Launching of Appeals for Funds – The Foundation Anniversary of the Scheme should be celebrated in such ways as to create avenues for fund raising. Hence, elaborate arrangements should be made to celebrate the achievements of the Scheme yearly. Its founding fathers including General Yakubu Gowon, the pioneer DG and all past DGs, longest served NYSC Board members and staff in the States including the National Directorate and all Presidential award winning Youth Corps members since inception must be celebrated in turns. Banquets or Dinners should be hosted to celebrate and honor them. The yearly celebrations should be occasions for fund raising in the name of the NYSC.

Medium Term – In the medium term, funds could be raised through continuous sale of the Jubilee/Yearly celebrations mementos to Corps members and the general public. In addition, income could be generated from the CFI Camps initiative on the one hand and the various TV Reality shows proposition on the other. The two projects are concepts that must not only be self-sustaining but also generate revenue if properly executed in partnership with relevant corporate bodies and individuals.

The NYSC Trust Fund – Long term funding prospects is however expected to be from the envisaged National Youth Service Corps Trust Fund. Once this dream comes to fruition, the funding of NYSC’s projects and programmes of development shall become more convenient and easier. Hence no stone must be left unturned and no effort must be spared to ensure that this all important Trust Fund is established.

DG’s Special Multi-Purpose Task Force

The activities, projects and propositions here highlighted and discussed require very audacious, resilient and strong will power on the part of all concerned – most especially the Director General. Hence the DG must seek the concurrence and approval of appropriate authorities in this regard. This is because the buck stops at his table and failure is neither acceptable nor tenable. Talk is indeed cheap. But “where there is a will, there is always a way”. To accelerate the smooth take off and proper grounding of the afore-mentioned projects, a high powered group as above named is imperative to operate in each geo – political zone and answerable to the DG. The Task Force is essentially to monitor and evaluate the projects for and on behalf of the DG and the National Directorate.

The National Commandos or National Rangers Para Military Force – It is necessary that the nation learn to make haste very slowly by not calling out the military forces most often there is internal crisis. This is for the very obvious reason of not undermining the professionalism of the military as such practice usually results in. It is thus quite necessary and incumbent upon the federal government to create a force purposely for internal crisis that might over stretch and overburden the Nigeria Police but may not require direct intervention and involvement of the military. This idea and creation would be in consonance with President Tinubu’s avowed desire to tackle and tame insecurity on one hand and also create employment opportunities as he wished on the other. The NYSC can be of invaluable help in providing the necessary manpower nucleus for such establishment. Interested and qualified Corps members can be enlisted directly into the Force immediately after the completion of their service year. The President may invoke Sections 217 (1-2) and 218 (1 – 3) of the 1999 Constitution in consideration of this suggestion. This is an entirely topical issue and would necessarily require further in-depth deliberations.

The NYSC clocked fifty years in 2023. Fifty years of existence in the life of any entity is an achievement in itself. This is more heartwarming if those are years of glorious and memorable events as is the case with the body. One can only congratulate the establishment on its laudable goals and trials of national unity. However, it must not rest on its oars for as long as the nation exists, much more need to be done. In conclusion, the Presidency and or supervising ministry must not confine itself with provision of headship of the body alone. The NYSC must be tasked to proactively challenge itself and the youths in its care with much more demanding tasks of national unity, development and prosperity.

– Adapted from his book, “Victorious through God — A Veteran’s Service Tales

Major Dele Olaitan (rtd) lives in Shao near Ilorin