NYSC Projects Annual Mobilisation Of Graduates To Hit 600,000 In 5 Years

The Director-General of the Scheme, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, disclosed this while addressing members of the 2026 Batch ‘C’ Stream II at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Sagamu, Ogun State.

Nafiu said the scheme mobilised about 400,000 prospective Corps Members last year, but the figure rose to approximately 450,000 this year, representing an increase of 50,000 graduates.

The NYSC Director of Information and Public Relations, Caroline Embu, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, quoting the Director-General as attributing accommodation shortages in some orientation camps across the country to the steady rise in annual mobilisation.

According to Nafiu, the growing number of graduates seeking to participate in the programme has placed considerable pressure on the Scheme’s existing infrastructure and resources, particularly accommodation facilities.

He said, “We mobilised about 400,000 prospective Corps Members last year, but this year, the figure has risen to approximately 450,000. We are projecting that within the next three to five years, the number could increase to between 500,000 and 600,000.”

The director-general said although the federal government was committed to addressing the challenges, providing additional infrastructure would require substantial financial resources and time, given competing national priorities such as security, education, road construction and other critical development projects.

He stressed that responsibility for maintaining and expanding orientation camps was shared between the federal government and state governments, noting that the camps were owned by the respective state governments, which were expected to provide the necessary infrastructure and support.

Meanwhile, Nafiu disclosed that female graduates had consistently outnumbered their male counterparts in the scheme’s mobilisation figures since 2021, marking a significant shift from the trend that had prevailed since the NYSC was established in 1973.

According to him, male graduates dominated the mobilisation figures until 2020, when the pattern began to change, with women taking the lead from the following year.

Citing statistics from the NYSC Information and Communication Technology Department, Nafiu said 167,840 female corps members were mobilised in 2021, compared with 152,052 males.

In 2022, the number of female Corps Members stood at 159,330, against 143,872 males.

He attributed the development to improved access to education for women, increased investment in girl-child education and the growing participation of females in tertiary education across the country.

The director-general said the trend reflected the impact of sustained interventions by successive governments and international development initiatives, particularly the Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals, which emphasised girl-child education and gender equality.