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From Sola Ojo, Kaduna
The National Youth Service Corps on Friday, mobilised thousands of the serving corps members in Kaduna state to intimate them on the need to support the quick passage of the NYSC Trust Fund.
Already, the NYSC Trust Fund bill has scaled through the first and second readings in the national assembly and now waiting for the public hearing coming up on Thursday 24, February this year, hence the need to detailed the corps members on how the Trust Fund would help them just like TETFund.
Coordinator of NYSC in Kaduna State, Isah Wana, said since the federal government cannot engage about 350,000 youths that pass through the NYSC yearly, when passed into law, the Trust Fund would be used to build business-minded individuals who would help the government to address the problem of unemployment in the country.
According to him, “we are mobilising support from the public beginning with corps members who are our primary constituents ahead of the public hearing on the NYSC Trust Fund coming up next week Thursday. The Trust Fund will address a lot of issues limiting the capacity of the scheme.
“Since the formation of the NYSC, the scheme has always relied on the national budget to operate its programmes. With dwindling federal income, the scheme cannot continue to beg for funds. So, we came up with this idea to lobby the government to make this come to reality just like TETFUND you are all familiar with.
“Now, the fund will be coming from all government awarded contracts. For example, if the federal government award a contract worth N50 million, the contractor will be compelled to contribute to the fund just about .3% of the contract sum.
“At the end of each project, the Fund will become large enough to expand our Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurial Development (SAED) Programme. Large enough to give grants and revolving loans to corps members who have business ideas.
“Large enough to enable the scheme to renovate and expand its orientation camp. Large enough to enable us to sow the youth corps service kits without going to the government and large enough to make the corps members comfortable so they can give their best during the service year.
*Like I said, about 350,000 educated youths pass-through this scheme every year and less than ten percent of this figure get employed within a reasonable time. This means the number of unemployed graduates is on the increase.
“We should not also forget that NYSC is the largest youth mobiliser in the country and the global attention is on the youths to curb restlessness. This is where we are coming in. To develop these youths into employers of labour through training and capacity building thereby resolving many issues that lead to unrest in the country today”, he explained.
