Nigerian youths, especially corps members have been advised to seek better and credible alternatives to paid employment.
The State Coordinator, of the National Youth Service Corps, Mrs. Grace Akpabio offered the advice, on Thursday during the flag off of the Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme for the 2020 Batch ‘B’ (Stream 1B) corps members deployed to Ondo State and those dislodged from Lagos State.
The state coordinator said that recent happenings in the country should encourage corps members to think of how best they could be independent both during and after the service year.
“My excellent, outstanding and wonderful corps members, I want you to be successful during the service year and beyond. This is the reason I am propelling you to pitch your tent with the programme established by the laudable scheme eight and half years ago to become self-reliant.
“I do not want a situation where you will be looking for limited paid employment when you can access the opportunities provided by the SAED programme in conjunction with financial institutions and empowerment agencies to becoming industrialists and captains of small and medium scale businesses.”
Akpabio said that the sad reality of the present times was that majority of youths who were struggling to make a living were looking up to the privileged few among their friends whose parents had secured their future.
“It makes me feel very uncomfortable whenever I see our vibrant and strong youths with intelligence to go with it trying to look up to the privileged few among their friends for survival.
“I want to encourage you to strive to be successful businessmen, like Mr. Tony Elumelu who today has made thousands of outstanding entrepreneurs across the continent of Africa,” she said.
The NYSC boss disclosed that the management of the scheme would continue to invest in empowerment programmes that would make the corps members stand out in the society.
Akpabio who was a foundation member of Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development department when it was established in March 2012 attested to the success stories as evidenced in the breakthrough recorded in all sub skill sectors, encouraged the corps members to join the progressive train of the programme.
In her welcome address, the Assistant Director/Head, SAED, Mrs. Itohan Ehimwenma, enjoined members of the service corps to take the in-camp training seriously because it would change their fortune for the better.
“My dear children, I want you to take advantage of structures put in place by NYSC to empower yourselves as what you will face outside is more challenging.
“The in-camp training is free of charge while the post camp training attracts huge discount as we have an arrangement with our trainers not to charge the corps members like other people in the society.”
According to Ehimwenma, learning or training that would ordinarily attract between N50,000 and N60,000 had been slashed to between N10,000 and N15,000, courtesy NYSC.
She thanked the facilitators and trainers for the provision of training materials and logistics to run the seven days intensive programme.
Highlight of the ceremony was the motivational lecture, after which testimonies of many serving and ex-corps members who are making waves with the skills and vocations acquired during the service year were shared.
