The National Youth Service Corps has unfolded plans to deepen its collaboration with relevant stakeholders and expand its impact towards empowering more corps members.

It also said the scheme has been strategically engaging key stakeholders such as the Bank of Industry (BOI), through its Graduate Entrepreneurship Fund (GEF), the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), private sector partners like SV-NED, OTNI, ASOLAR, and other development agencies.

NYSC director general, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, said this weekend in his address at the 2025 Strategic Meeting/Debriefing of State Officers held in Abuja.

He said these partnerships will not only ensure that corps members are equipped with theoretical knowledge, but that they will also provide exposure to real-world business environments, enabling them to hone their entrepreneurial and leadership skills.

General Nafiu said the scheme has formalised and operationalised these partnerships through frameworks such as the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and the development of a comprehensive Action Plan by NYSC and SMEDAN.

“By joining forces with these stakeholders, we aim to bridge the gap between education and employment, facilitating a seamless transition for our corps members into self-employment and, ultimately, empowering them to become employers of labour,” the DG said.