As part of ongoing reforms aimed at repositioning the program, the Federal Government has confirmed plans to replace the National Youth Service Corps’ traditional khaki uniform with locally made Adire fabric.
In an interview with Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Thursday, Minister of Youth Development Ayodele Olawande revealed this. She stated that the action was meant to encourage domestic manufacturing and guarantee that government expenditure supports the Nigerian economy.
He said;
“It’s Adire. So, Adire is being produced in Nigeria. We have them in Ogun, we have them in Kwara, we have textile industry. Let’s put our money back into the country.”
“After you are leaving the camp, you are not just posted to a school just because NYSC wants you to be in school but because of the process you followed when in camp. So, that is going to give a framework of where you are going to be posted to .”
“If you have interest that you want to go to the North-East why not, but if you don’t have interest, instead of redeploying you, paying people for camp, doing all those funny things, we said no, let us look at it and say who are those in that area, that can reside in those geographical areas and still give us the kind of number we are looking for since we are saying NYSC should be more impactful. So, that is what we are talking about.”
The changes came after the Federal Executive Council approved a thorough overhaul of the NYSC on Monday. This was the scheme’s first significant reform since its founding in 1973.
The Federal Executive Council instructed the Federal Ministry of Youth Development and the Attorney-General of the Federation to modify the NYSC Act and its regulations in accordance with the approved reforms.
According to the new framework, the military will continue to provide security support for corps members across the country, but a civilian will lead the scheme’s operations.
I really don’t buy into this idea. I believe the focus should be on the other important reforms that can genuinely improve the program and its impact. Leaving the uniform unchanged allows us to concentrate on meaningful changes that address the core issues, rather than getting caught up in superficial alterations.
Live with Purpose, Love with Passion. Remember to be happy
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Rose Ajieh
