The Federal Government has announced plans to empower at least 5,000 members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) with N10 million each to fund their entrepreneurial ventures after they complete the NYSC scheme.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Youth Development, Dr. Jamila Ibrahim, during the opening ceremony of the inaugural meeting of the NYSC management with heads of Corps Producing Institutions (CPI) in Nigeria, held on Monday in Abuja.
She noted that this funding initiative aligns with the upcoming NYSC reforms and is distinct from the Nigerian Youth Investment Fund program set for 2024.
According to her, she will be inaugurating a team to undertake the review, restructuring and reforms of the NYSC.
The minister explained that this initiative would allow the Federal Government to effectively utilize and manage the extensive assets of the NYSC, making strategic investments across various sectors. She highlighted the targeted sectors for these investments as agriculture, manufacturing, garment making, communication, and digital banking.
She emphasized that this effort reflects the current administration’s commitment to investing in youth-led entrepreneurial ventures, positioning it as a crucial step towards involving young people in Nigeria’s progress towards becoming a trillion-dollar economy.
Ibrahim therefore urged the participants, as the custodians of higher education in Nigeria, to bear the profound responsibility of nurturing the intellectual, moral and civic capacity of the nation’s youth.