I have lately been thinking about the things that are the causes of lack of development and productivity in our blessed country and i discovered that the NYSC has outlived its usefulness in Nigeria.
Most of the elderly in the country do have good stories to tell about the NYSC experience because most of them began their lifelong career from this program and some even met their life partners during this program.
NYSC is the National Youth Service Corp which is a one year after graduation program where graduates are meant to serve their fatherland and get experience about other parts of the country that are non-native to them and possibly settle their to encourage cross cultural harmony.
However, this program has outlived his purpose for the following reasons:
1. Employers of labour now use it as their main source of temporary staff recruitment and gave them access to cheap labour where they pay little or nothing to Corp members and refuse to absorb them because they have the hope that another set will come every other year. This has reduced productivity and increased unemployment rate in the country. Companies no more give priority to training staffs for long term productivity but use cheap labour to achieve their mediocre productivity.
2. Most graduates today are already over aged for employment, average age of graduate from Nigerian higher institution is 26, now add that to the year spent in NYSC, that is 27years. Check the dailies, most companies recruiting fresh graduates are always lokking for graduates not less than 25 years to employ as graduate trainee. What will be the fate of those above 25 years who still need to go for the NYSC program and eventually do not get retained. They get back into the labour market endlessly waiting to be admitted.
3. The NYSC program do not give priority to buiding Entrepreneurial skill, only lectures within the 3 weeks orientation accomodates talks on entrepreneurship. I was opportuned to attend Corpers entrepreneurship training by SMEDAN while i served but we had to pay for it and it was only limited to Lagos and Abuja Corp members. So, what alternative is the program creating for the unretained Corp members. The program would have made more sense if its called Nation Youth Entrepreneurship Corp and it’s focused primarily on mentoring, training and entrepreneurship development.
4. What good is the 3 weeks Regimented Camp anyway? I really don’t see its use to me personally after my service year.
5. The government has no plan for the Corps members in area of empowerment should they not be retained, because you can’t fund fresh graduates who lack entrepreneurial knowledge who intends to venture, it will be a waste of money. If the government has invested in training them for a whole year, then microfinance funding will make sense. The only “stupid” CBN contest was for Corp members to write a business plan and the best business plan will be rewarded with some small financing. The question is, how many corpers can write a business plan. Why can’t CBN invest in training Corp members on how to write a business plan, start a venture successfully and then give as many access to soft loan.
The whole NYSC program Sucks and its a mere waste of youthful life. It should be scrapped or totally overhauled, but i prefer the cancellation option.
The above is my Candid opinion, Do comment below on your thoughts on this, contrary opinion is welcomed.
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