NYSC Expands SAED Programme, Moves to Establish Trust Fund for Corps Members

NYSC Expands SAED Programme, Moves to Establish Trust Fund for Corps Members

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has intensified efforts to strengthen youth empowerment in Nigeria through an expanded Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme, alongside new funding partnerships and the proposed NYSC Trust Fund aimed at improving access to capital for corps members.

The Director-General of NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Olakunle Nafiu, disclosed this in Abuja on Sunday while outlining reforms designed to reposition the scheme to better address youth unemployment and support sustainable entrepreneurship among Nigerian graduates.

He explained that although unemployment was not a major concern when NYSC was established in 1973, the inclusion of skills acquisition in its structure reflected the foresight of its founders, who anticipated future economic and labour market challenges.

Nafiu said the SAED programme has now become a central component of NYSC operations, especially as the country continues to grapple with rising unemployment and economic pressure affecting young people.

According to him, the scheme is now more intentional in its approach, ensuring that corps members graduate from service not only with academic certificates but also with practical vocational and entrepreneurial skills that can support self-reliance and job creation.

He noted that participation in SAED has continued to increase, with corps members actively engaging in training areas such as digital skills development, agriculture, fashion design, trades, and small business management.

However, he identified access to finance as the major challenge limiting the transition from training to actual business ownership among corps members.

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“The issue is not training; funding is what we are now trying to address so that they can translate these skills into businesses,” he said.

The NYSC Director-General also revealed that the scheme has strengthened its collaboration with the Bank of Industry (BoI) to support corps members with funding for viable business ideas.

Through the partnership, the BoI provides an annual ₦2 billion grant facility, while eligible corps members can access up to ₦5 million in loans at about 9 per cent interest rate, which is significantly lower than commercial bank rates.

He added that discussions are ongoing to further reduce the interest rate to make funding even more accessible, while financial literacy training has also been integrated into the NYSC orientation programme to improve corps members’ business and money management skills.

Nafiu further linked the long-term sustainability of the programme to the proposed NYSC Trust Fund, which is expected to provide a dedicated financing structure for youth empowerment and infrastructure development across NYSC facilities nationwide.

He explained that the fund would enable the scheme to offer direct support to corps members, including low-interest loans ranging from zero to three per cent, as well as grants for promising entrepreneurial projects.

“With the Trust Fund, we will be able to invest more in SAED and even provide direct grants to corps members from our own resources at zero to three per cent interest rates,” he said.

He added that the Trust Fund would also help address infrastructural gaps in orientation camps and NYSC state secretariats, improving service delivery and programme delivery efficiency across the country.

The NYSC boss also highlighted the role of NYSC Ventures, which includes farms, bakeries, and water production units designed to give corps members hands-on entrepreneurial experience while also generating supplementary income for the scheme.

He explained that these ventures serve as practical training platforms, particularly in agro-allied value chains and production-based enterprises, helping corps members gain real-world business exposure.

Nafiu stressed that although NYSC is not a profit-making organisation, all proceeds from its ventures are remitted into the Treasury Single Account (TSA) in line with government financial regulations.

He expressed optimism that improved funding through the proposed Trust Fund and strengthened partnerships would enable the scheme to scale up its entrepreneurship initiatives and significantly increase the number of corps members transitioning into job creators rather than job seekers.

NYSC reaffirmed its commitment to continuously evolve its programmes in line with Nigeria’s economic realities, with a focus on entrepreneurship development, innovation, and youth employment generation.

NYSC Expands SAED Programme, Moves to Establish Trust Fund for Corps Members