The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is moving to trade its traditional booklets for digital toolkits.
In a strategic play to modernize the 53-year-old scheme, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, the director-general of NYSC, recently visited the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of Pan-Atlantic University in Lagos to finalize a “game-changer” digital entrepreneurship framework.
The partnership aims to integrate EDC’s extensive SME resources into a digital platform designed for a “tech-savvy” generation of corps members.
For Nigeria, where youth unemployment remains a structural bottleneck, the move represents an attempt to shift the NYSC from a year of mandatory service to a year of intensive venture building and skill acquisition.
The Pivot: From Skilled Workers to Entrepreneurial Mindsets
Since 2012, the NYSC’s Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) department has focused largely on manual skills. However, internal data suggests that skills alone aren’t moving the needle on GDP.
“A skilled person without the entrepreneurial mindset will still be a poor person. And the much-desired contribution to GDP will not be achieved,” noted Mr. Kehinde Aremu-Cole, director at SAED. “There had to be a rethinking of the project to emphasize not just skills, but entrepreneurship development and all the value chain it entails.”
To fix this, NYSC is tapping into EDC’s 23-year track record of deepening the entrepreneurship ecosystem. The collaboration will grant corps members access to the EDC SME Toolkit, a centralized digital repository of resources for navigating the Nigerian business landscape.
Tech-First or Bust
Recognizing the digital-native nature of current corps members, Brigadier General Nafiu emphasized that the old pedagogical models are no longer fit for purpose.
“We are conscious of the environment, and we are dealing with a new set of corps members, who are tech savvy and won’t be ready to receive booklets just like it was done previously,” the DG stated. “The skills acquisition and entrepreneurship development department of NYSC is equipped to tackle unemployment… We look for partners that are willing to collaborate with us and I think EDC is one of the foremost partners we need to bring on to restructure, remodel, and redefine the plans we have.”
Closing the Talent Gap
For EDC, the visit marks the culmination of a decade-long relationship. Dr. Olawale Anifowose, Programmes and Partnerships Director at EDC, highlighted that the visit “marks a huge step towards properly defining the offering which we have for corps members.”
Whether the graduates choose the path of “intrapreneurship” in paid employment or launch their own startups, the goal is value addition. “All of the resources will build their capacity to enable them to add value as young Nigerians,” Anifowose added.
Dr. Nneka Okekearu, Director at EDC, echoed this sentiment, noting the university’s focus on youth:
“The primary reason why we settled was to deepen the entrepreneurship ecosystem… we know that entrepreneurship is everywhere.”
As Nigeria targets a $1 trillion economy, the NYSC’s transition into a digital incubator could be pivotal. By moving from booklets to bit-sized, digital-first learning, the scheme is attempting to turn 400,000+ annual corps members into a formidable army of entrepreneurs.
“I am excited about the partnership… the direction we are headed on this scheme is particularly laudable because our corps members will gain access to the proper skill learning technique to match the current entrepreneurship requirement,” concluded General Nafiu.
