News
NYSC DG Advises Corps Members On Community Development Projects
Joel Ajayi
The Director General of the National Youth Service Corps, Brigadier General YD Ahmed has urged the 2023 Batch ‘C’ Stream One Corps Members to ensure that they develop their various host communities with projects that would improve the standard of living of the residents.
He said Community Development Service is one of the four compulsory cardinal programmes of the Scheme that every Corps Member must participate actively before being considered to collect the Certificate of National Service.
General Ahmed stated this today while addressing Corps Members during his visit to NYSC Sokoto and Kebbi State Orientation Camps.
He however appealed to the Corps Members to study the felt needs of their host communities and obtain approval from NYSC before embarking on any project.
“Source for funds to execute projects within your host communities. Note that it is an offense to sponsor projects with your monthly allowances.
Please don’t accept free rides from strangers. Go to approved motor parks and board vehicles whenever you are traveling.
Follow the security lectures you were exposed to in camp anywhere you are posted to and ensure you don’t expose yourselves to danger”, he said.
In his remark, the NYSC Sokoto State Coordinator, Alhaji Yakubu Yaro Usman described the Corps Members in the Wamakko camp as law-abiding and dutiful.
In a similar vein, the NYSC Kebbi State Coordinator, Mrs Okolo Aghata Banki said a total of 154 camp officials comprising NYSC Staff and personnel from other collaborating agencies are working in synergy.
She said a total of 1,088 Corps Members were registered in the camp.
Mrs. Okolo added that the security and general well-being of all Corps Members in the camp remain the topmost priority, adding that all Camp Officials are alert to the task of providing every necessary guideline for the Corps Members towards preparing them for their roles towards nation-building.
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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