NYSC guarantees start-up loans to corps members
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has assured corps members of providing them with start-up loans to actualise their business dreams.
Mrs. Christy Uba, the Acting Director-General of the scheme, made this known at the closing ceremony of the 2022 Batch C, Stream II set deployed to Nasarawa State at the Magaji Dan Yamusa Permanent Orientation Camp in Keffi on Tuesday.
Uba, represented by Alhaji Abdullahi Jikamshi, the coordinator of the scheme in the state, expressed delight over the impressive reports she received on the corps members' participation in the entrepreneurial trainings conducted in camp under the NYSC Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) program.
She encouraged them to build on the skills they acquired by availing themselves of opportunities for post-camp training, as it would go a long way in empowering them for self-reliance.
"On our part, we are liaising with financial institutions and other stakeholders with a view to providing start-up loans to enable you to actualize your dreams."
"I wish to assure you that management will continue to explore avenues for optimizing the impact of the program," she said.
Uba also called on the 1,023 corps members, comprising 393 males and 630 females, to sustain the spirit of patriotism, hard work, and resilience they imbibed during the orientation course.
She expressed the hope that they would strive to meet the expectations of Nigerians by contributing towards the progress and development of the country.
She called on the corps members to perform their duties at the respective places of primary assignments with diligence and be guided by the provisions of the NYSC Act and Bye-Laws as well as workplace rules and regulations.
She warned the corps members to avoid acts that could endanger their lives, such as staying out late, attending night parties, visiting dangerous places, and accepting car rides and gifts from strangers.
Dr. Salaudeen Al-Awwal, a corps member, commended NYSC for striving to make start-up loans available for corps members, adding that the loans would be useful in putting into practice the entrepreneurial skills they learned on camp.
"I am happy because we all live in Nigeria, and we all know that white collar jobs are not readily available." "So I think the best way to help corps members is to create something like that," he said.
