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Don’t Allow Graduates Dent Your Image, NYSC Warns Foreign Corps Producing Institutions
Joel Ajayi
In its determination to involve all relevant stakeholders in the sanitization of the mobilization process in the foreign-trained Division, of National Youth Service Corps NYSC management warned the Foreign Corps foreign-producing institutions not to be involved in the mobilization of any unqualified foreign-trained Nigerian Graduates.
This even as the scheme read the riot act to institutions for any Foreign Corps Producing Institutions for any wrongdoing.
NYSC’s Director-General, General. Brig Gen YD Ahmed gave the fresh warning on Wednesday in Abuja at the 3rd Meeting of Management with Registrars of Foreign Corps Producing Institutions with the Theme: “Tackling the Emerging Challenges in Mobilization of foreign-trained Nigerian Graduates for Effective National Services.”
He noted that the meeting was convened to seek ways of eliminating flaws in the NYSC mobilization process, adding that the Scheme was now determined more than ever to plug all loopholes.
He said: “This year’s meeting is the third in the series. I don’t want to believe that the interval in-between the meetings is the reason for the cumulative high number of challenges in the foreign-trained segment of the NYSC mobilization process.
“Sadly, these challenges are more pronounced with schools operating within the border countries with Nigeria irrespective of the proximity advantage to the right source of information. This has prompted emphasis on invitations to the schools from the countries of Benin Republic, Togo, Niger, Cameroun, and Ghana, by extension.
“This meeting will therefore, among other things, review previous performances, including the implementation of resolutions and also work out new templates for eradication of contemporary or emerging challenges that is why the theme is apt, as we look forward towards constructive engagement with all representatives of the various schools for deliberations on the following challenges.”
DG however, identified challenges like; Diplomatic bottlenecks and legal hiccups in different countries, date of graduation issue, the menace of fake degree certificates, Sale of degrees, and commercialization of travel documents, as well as misunderstanding and the abuse of the provision on the ECOWAS Protocol on free-movement, these challenges gave impetus to the hosting of this workshop.
Accordingly, we shall consider the following measures as key to overcoming some of the challenges identified in the mobilization of foreign-trained Nigerian Graduates.
While reading the riot the Foreign Corps Producing Institutions, NYSC DG expressed in order to curtail the spate of non-graduates login into the NYSC portal to register unchecked, all schools in Benin Republic, Togo, Cameroun, and Niger shall henceforth be submitting a project-bound master list of their graduates to the NYSC every service year.
“To achieve this, all schools in the countries mentioned above should appoint Student Affairs Officers duly introduced to the NYSC. The SAOs must be people of proven integrity who would relate closely with the NYSC for mobilization purposes.
“Effective, 2024 Batch A service year, the NYSC ICT Department should work out modalities on how schools from the five countries mentioned above would commence the upload of their graduates on SABALM as an additional measure to safeguard the credibility of the NYSC mobilizations process.
“Schools must make conscious efforts to specifically indicate the date of graduation on their degree certificates and transcripts to avoid the confusion where dates of certificate issuance or convocation are often misconstrued by prospective Corps Members as date of graduation.”
Director Corps Mobilization Hajia in her welcome addressed the Director, of Corps Mobilization, Mrs. Siddique Isa Walida appreciated all the critical stakeholders for their contribution towards an improved mobilization process and development of the Scheme.
News
AWESSA 2026: Customs Assures Border Cooperation for Women Entrepreneurs
By James Samuel, Abuja
The Nigeria Customs Service has said the nation’s borders must become gateways of opportunity for African women entrepreneurs, not obstacles that kill their businesses.
This was disclosed at the African Women’s Economic Sovereignty Summit and Awards (AWESSA) 2026 held at the Customs House, corporate headquarters of the Nigeria Customs Service in Abuja.
Representing the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, his representative, an Assistant Controller, said hosting the summit inside Customs premises was deliberate.
“That this summit holds within the Customs premises is no accident. It is a statement of intent,” he said.
“The border is where the promise of every African trader either comes alive or dies quietly. And the men and women of this Service have resolved that for every woman entrepreneur of this continent, that promise will never die.”
He said women account for an estimated 70% of informal cross-border trade in Africa and over half of agricultural labour, yet they face documentation, standards, finance and harassment challenges.
“Too often she meets the border as an obstacle rather than a gateway. Because she trades in small volumes, in cash, in informality without formal papers, capable business women are now trapped in informality, invisible to trade statistics,” he noted.
He added: “AfCFTA will not be delivered by treaties alone. It will be delivered at border posts, in conference halls, and in market stores.”
Also speaking, the Executive Director of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Mrs. Nonye Ayeni, represented by a Director, said women are central to Nigeria’s non-oil export sector.
According to her, NEPC’s focus is now on building export- ready competitive enterprises through programmes like the Women in Export Initiative, Export Clinic, and Zero to Export.
“Our focus is no longer on encouraging exports alone, it is on building competitive export-ready enterprises. We are supporting women to move beyond production into value addition, quality assurance, standard compliance, branding and market positioning,” she said.
She said AfCFTA offers a market of over one billion people, but women need knowledge, certifications and institutional support.
“Empowering women economically is one of the most effective tools for achieving poverty reduction, food security, job creation and inclusive growth,” she stated.
The Convener, Helen Okon, who is the Publisher of Business Review Africa & Africa Today Magazine, as well as representatives of NAFDAC DG and NEXIM Bank MD, reaffirmed commitment to supporting women-owned businesses access standards, certification and finance.
The summit, with the theme of positioning women as drivers of trade and sustainable development, is part of activities marking the International Year of the Women Farmer.
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