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COVID-19: NYSC Shuts Ongoing Orientation Camps

Published

7 years ago

March 18, 2020

…. As Lauds Kastina govt. Security Agencies Over Rescue Of Abducted Corps Members

Joel Ajayi

Sequel to the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic which led to the cancellation of the National Sports Festival, Management of the National Youth Service Corps Scheme wishes to announce the suspension of the ongoing Orientation course for the 2020 Batch ” A” Stream 1 Corps Members.

The scheme made this known on Tuesday in a statement issued by the Director, Press and Public Relations Adenike Adeyemi (Mrs) in Abuja

According to the statement, therefore, the Corps Members shall be posted to commence their primary assignments forthwith, while they shall be invited back to the Orientation camps when the situation improves, just like it happened a few years ago when the Nation was confronted by the Ebola virus threat.

“Management wishes to state that no Corps Member or Camp Official has contracted the virus.”

In a related development, the Director-General of NYSC Brigadier General Shuaibu Ibrahim has commended the Katsina State Government and security agencies for the swift rescue of four prospective Corps Members, who were kidnapped in the State on their way to the Zamfara State Orientation Camp.

He made the commendation today during a thank-you visit to the State Governor, Rt. Hon Aminu Bello Masari at the Government House, Katsina.

The Director-General said the rescue of the victims less than twenty-four hours after their abduction and the Governor’s decision to host them at the Government House was heartwarming.

He recalled how the State Governor personally led efforts to rescue some Corps Members that were involved in a fatal road accident a few months ago.

Ibrahim thanked the State Government for remaining unwavering in its support for the Scheme, especially in the area of security and general welfare of Corps Members. He added that its gestures had affirmed the status of Katsina as one of the most NYSC-friendly States.

The Director-General, who presented a letter of appreciation to Governor Masari represented by his Deputy, Quantity Surveyor Mannir Yakubu, urged the State to sustain its efforts at providing a conducive environment for the Corps Members in order to optimize their potentials for national development.

He informed his host about an on-going collaboration of the NYSC with the Federal Road Safety Corps and major Transport Unions in the country aimed at ensuring the safety of Corps Members while traveling on Nigerian roads.

Among other things, he said, the partnership emphasized key issues like boarding of vehicles at designated motor parks, roadworthiness of vehicles, avoidance of night journeys, and assignment of qualified drivers of sound mind.

Responding, the Deputy Governor, Quantity Surveyor Mannir Yakubu said the action of the State Government in rescuing the abducted Corps Members was consistent with its constitutional responsibility of securing the lives and property of all residents.

Yakubu said the speedy rescue of the victims was achieved partly due to the truce between the State Government and repentant bandits, adding that the administration would continue to explore avenues for the entrenchment of peace and security.

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Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold

Published

3 days ago

October 28, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, on Tuesday inaugurated the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector in Abuja, dismissing reports that Nigeria sold $700 billion worth of solid minerals to the US.

The inauguration followed the strategic cooperation framework established between Nigeria and the United States during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head PRESS and Public Relations Department Mrs. Kania Maliki Andeyaba stated that, Alake in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed with the US is a government-to-government platform to facilitate business-to-business engagements between American investors and Nigerian local operators, not a sale of assets.

Harping on the importance of the solid minerals sector to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda, he noted that the administration was committed to reducing dependence on a mono-product economy through the sustainable development of Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.

According to him, the Nigeria–US partnership as a strategic initiative to attract investment, promote technology transfer, strengthen local mineral processing and create employment opportunities.

“There is no sale of any Nigerian asset. There’s nothing exchanging hands,” Alake declared.

“We created a platform to facilitate mingling of US investment ventures with Nigeria’s local operators. It is in the public domain. We signed it in public and published it in four or five national newspapers.”

The Minister said reports claiming the US was coming to take over Nigeria’s minerals and security architecture were untrue at best and products of riotous imagination at worst.

Explaining the policy thrust, Alake said Africa has historically held the short end of the stick in global economic transactions, and Nigeria is determined to change that model.

“We have the resources, the critical elements the world needs to transit to clean energy. So we are creating a new paradigm — you bring your capital, expertise and technology, to match with our natural resources and create a win-win situation . The investor gains, Nigeria gains.’’he said.

Nigeria, he stressed, had operated a mono-cultural economy dependent on oil, while solid minerals were exploited informally — with ores taken “from pit to port” without value addition.

Alake said government has now made local processing mandatory, refusing to grant mineral titles to investors without a clear pathway to processing in Nigeria.

He said the policy led to the springing up of processing factories, including the largest lithium processing plant in West Africa commissioned recently in Nasarawa by the Vice President, and informed the formation of the African Minerals Strategy Group.

Alake noted that investor confidence has returned due to macro-economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu that guarantee security of tenure and repatriation of profits.

He charged the committee to discharge its assignment responsibly, saying its work is strategic to achieving the President’s $1 trillion economy target.

To this end, he told the Committee to ensure effective coordination, identify investment opportunities and translate the framework into measurable outcomes capable of positioning Nigeria as a competitive player in the global solid minerals industry.

In his welcome address, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the inauguration translates growing bilateral engagements into a structured framework for practical cooperation and investment mobilization

Economic Officer at the US Embassy, Jonathan Baas, said President Donald Trump has prioritized three areas for US embassies — energy, artificial intelligence/super intelligence, and critical minerals.

Baas said Washington’s direction is to work with partners to secure critical supply chains while ensuring partners capture value.

“We just signed a contract today on looking into building AI data centres in Nigeria at the Nigerian Economic Summit. That’s the direction Washington wants us to go,” he said.

In his vote of thanks, CEO/Managing Director of Nigeria Solid Minerals Company, NSMC said that the committee

is expected to coordinate implementation, facilitate investment and monitor progress towards achieving the objectives of the Nigeria–US cooperation framework.

The inauguration reinforces the Federal Government’s commitment to repositioning the solid minerals sector as a key driver of economic diversification, industrial development and national prosperity under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

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