NYSC marks 53rd anniversary with fitness walk in Jigawa

The National Youth Service Corps in Jigawa State on Friday marked 53 years of service to Nigeria with a fitness walk and public lecture held in Dutse.

PidomNigeria Online observed that the National Youth Service Corps was established on May 22, 1973, nearly two decades before Jigawa State was created in 1991. Despite coming into existence after the scheme began, Jigawa has benefited significantly from the deployment of corps members across key sectors.

Our correspondent gathered that over the years, corps members have provided critical manpower in education, health, agriculture, and community development across the state’s 27 local government areas.

To commemorate the anniversary, hundreds of stakeholders, corps members, and government officials gathered at the NYSC Jigawa State Secretariat and commenced the day with a fitness walk from the secretariat along the Dutse-Shuwarin Road before proceeding to Maikwarya Road near the Government House in the state capital.

Speaking during the lecture held at the NYSC Jigawa State Secretariat, the State Coordinator, Muhammad Baba, said the scheme has mobilised millions of Nigerian graduates across cultural, linguistic, and religious lines.

“Over the last 53 years, the ‘corpers’ phenomenon has become deeply woven into the fabric of Nigerian society,” Baba said.

According to the coordinator, the walk set the tone for a public lecture reflecting on five decades of the NYSC as a bold experiment in reconciliation, reconstruction, and national integration after the Civil War.

He noted that the scheme has provided vital manpower to rural areas, significantly impacting the education and health sectors across the state.

Baba also highlighted the NYSC’s role as the operational backbone of Nigeria’s electoral process through the deployment of ad hoc staff.

Addressing critics calling for the programme to be overhauled or made optional, the coordinator argued that modern-day tribalism and high youth unemployment require more than a one-year service stint to resolve.

He further highlighted the NYSC’s growing emphasis on the Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development programme.

The goal, he explained, is to empower graduates to become self-reliant and employers of labour rather than depend solely on scarce government jobs.

“As the scheme looks beyond its 53-year milestone, the focus is on continuous reform,” Baba said.

He, however, stressed the need to balance the founding vision of a united Nigeria with the critical need to protect participating youths and modernise the programme.

The coordinator also outlined the scheme’s contributions to health, education, agriculture, environmental sustainability, community support, and the economy in Jigawa State.

He further praised the cordial relationship between the NYSC and the Jigawa State Government, noting that the state provided a state-of-the-art NYSC orientation camp in Panisau.

“The state government also provided hostels for posted corps members across the 27 LGAs, along with logistics support and interventions during health outreaches and sensitisation campaigns,” he said.

Similarly, Muhammad Baba lauded host communities in Jigawa for what he described as their exceptional support for the scheme and corps members posted to the state.

He also acknowledged the guidance and support the NYSC receives from traditional rulers across the state.

Some corps members who participated in the events told our correspondent that the NYSC had given them a deeper understanding of Nigeria’s diversity.

Aisha Musa, a corps member, said after the event that “serving outside my state has opened my eyes to new cultures and opportunities I never imagined.”

Another corps member, Yusuf Ibrahim, said the SAED programme he underwent during his three-week orientation camp training had changed his outlook on life after service.

“Through SAED, I now have skills that can help me start my own business instead of waiting for a government job,” Ibrahim told our correspondent.