NYSC and the challenge of rural development

One of the specific objectives is the development of common ties among our youths to promote national unity by ensuring that: i)    as far as possible, youths are assigned to jobs in states other than their states of origin; ii)    each group assigned to work together is as representative of the country as possible; iii)   […]

One of the specific objectives is the development of common ties among our youths to promote national unity by ensuring that:

i)    as far as possible, youths are assigned to jobs in states other than their states of origin;

ii)    each group assigned to work together is as representative of the country as possible;

iii)    the youths are exposed to the modes of living of the people in different parts of the country with a view to removing prejudices, eliminating ignorance and confirming at first hand the many similarities among Nigerians of all ethnic groups.

After every orientation exercise, corps members are posted to various organizations, Public and Private where they are expected to contribute to the development of their host communities. This is the primary assignment stage. Alongside the primary assignment is the secondary assignment referred to as Community Development Service.   

This is designed to mobilize the corps members, the community and the different tiers of government to identify the needs of the community and make deliberate effort at addressing such needs. As the early part of the scheme, a non-month community development programme is organized whereby corps members are withdrawn from their places of primary assignment and moved to project sites to work with host community members. Through this, corps members had provided infrastructural facilities such as roads, culverts, market stalls, schools and bus-stops. However, with the down turn in the economy, the usual financial/material supports for such programmes seized. That notwithstanding, corps members still make substantial contributions to the upliftment of the rural communities.

The NYSC, as a service-oriented institution, re-evaluates its operation periodically to ensure greater efficiency, effectiveness and continued relevance in bringing development to the rural communities. This led to the formation of group Community Development where corps members come together once every week. Such groups include Mass Literacy Campaign. We May not forget so soon the involvement of this CDS group in “Each One Teach One or Fund the Teaching of One”, extra moral classes, Dance/Drama group, environmental sanitation and beautification.

Today, evidence abounds in most rural communities where corps members through the Community Development Service brought development to such rural communities. The corps members through these various projects have been able to salvage the dilapidated educational sector where in most rural communities’ corps members form the bulk of teaching staff. The health sector is not left out as such communities who hitherto had no access to health facilities now enjoy functional clinic and health services with the availability of medical doctors and other Para-medics. Agricultural sector has also benefited as new farming techniques are being introduced to the local farmers for improved production. All these would not have been possible without the NYSC and its policy of rural posting.

The National Youth Service Corps as a grassroots organization is evolving new ideas on regular basis in relations to new policies and programmes of the government. These corps members not only serve as vanguards for creating awareness for these policies but participate actively in actualizing them.

The contributions of these corps members at the grass root especially in the area of Community Development and awareness creation on government policies and programmes have made the government to reemphasize its commitment to sustain the noble scheme. This has come in various ways, such as directive through the office of Secretary to the Government of Nigeria to all Government and Private organisations not to reject corps members posted to them after the orientation course. Arising from this, many development partners have gone into collaborations with the scheme using the available readymade manpower. UNICEF’s collaboration with NYSC on Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support project using corps members as peer educators in rural areas where they serve as eye opener to other agencies who later became attracted to the scheme. Other collaborators are National Population Commission (NPC), United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in the area of improving reading culture of Nigerians particularly in the rural areas through the establishment of rural libraries using corps members. Others include, Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation (WOTCLIFF), Energy COMMISSION OF Nigeria, ICPC, NDE etc.

In consonance with the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) and the needs for information flow on these policies, NYSC and MDG entered into an Advocacy Project in August, 2006 with the mandate to train corps volunteer as Development knowledge facilitators (DKFS). The aim is to create a general public awareness of these policies and programmes of government with the goal of engendering sustainable development. This is only possible with the readymade manpower in the corps members deployed to every nook and crany of Nigeria.

The NYSC has imparted so well and has penetrated the length and breadth of this country with landmark Community Development Projects. These projects speak volumes of the continued relevance of the Noble scheme.

Pius writes from No.15, Kofo Abayomi Street, Yaba, Lagos.