BREAKING: Minister urges private sector employers to accept corp members

The Minister for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, has appealed to employers to accept corps members posted to their organisations for their mandatory one-year service.

The minister made the appeal during a media parley on Tuesday in Abuja, where he reiterated the Ministry’s directive lifting the ban on the posting of corps members to private sector institutions.

Recall that the Federal Government on November 19, 2024 lifted the ban restricting the posting of corps members to the public sector, allowing for corps members to now be posted to private sector organisations, including banks and oil and gas companies.

Olawande stated that the implementation of the government directive is, to begin with the 2024 Batch ‘C’ Stream 1, who recently completed their orientation exercise at the NYSC Camps, adding that the ministry would eventually collaborate with the employers and review policies to make sure the corpers make the most of the one year service.

“I’ll just say this, I’m appealing and I’m begging; I’ve made a Ministerial order and I’ve sent it down to the NYSC because we are the supervising Ministry, that all corps members should be posted to their areas of study. We removed the barriers to make sure that corps members can serve anywhere. That has been done and I said it must start by this camp that ends today”.

“And I want to tell you categorically that I’m pleading and I’m begging on behalf of all corps members, to the employers of corpers, that please, for the sake of this country, accept them. Let them be with you. Very soon, we are going to have a reshape to collaborate on what they are doing, to make it look like you have something to tell yourself at the end of one year. But we are begging, for now, for this present time, whenever they are posted to you, for crying out loud, for God’s sake, accept them as they are leaving the camp”, he said.

The minister also stated that his objective was to ensure protection, empowerment and support for young people across the country both formal and informal, noting that it was time for the youth.

“If there is one thing that we want to achieve as a Ministry now, it is to support the young people. It is to empower the young people and also to protect the young people. If we can do these successfully, I know the young people are going to be proud of this Ministry. With the help of all the directors, we have made up our mind that it is time for youths; youth for youths”, he added.