BY MUSA IDRIS UMAR
Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, has pledged to reconstruct and expand the permanent National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp in the state.
The governor made the announcement on Friday when he received the NYSC Director General, Brig. Gen. Yusha’u Ahmed, and his management team at the Government House, Maiduguri.
The Borno NYSC orientation camp, which resumed in 2023 after a 12-year suspension, currently operates from the Umar Mustapha Elkanemi Arabic School.
However, the governor stressed the need for a dedicated camp to provide corps members with better facilities and prevent possible disruptions.
'The Deputy Chief of Staff and Chairman of the NYSC governing board, let’s see how we commence the construction of the permanent site and expand accommodation. Currently, the scheme is operating within a school, and soon the school management may need the space back. The earlier we start, the better,' Gov. Zulum said.
The governor also commended the contributions of medical corps members and emphasized the need for more graduates in STEM-related fields—such as Physics, Mathematics, and English—to support science education in the state’s secondary schools.
He expressed gratitude to the NYSC leadership for reinstating the orientation camp in Borno, noting that the move has significantly eased the burden on corps members who previously had to travel to other states for their orientation.
While responding, Brig. Gen. Yusha’u Ahmed highlighted that his visit aimed to assess the welfare and orientation camp facilities for corps members in Borno and other North-East states.
He praised the Borno State Government for its consistent support of the NYSC scheme.
'I must say that corps members are in good hands. The support they are receiving in Borno has been tremendous. This visit is an opportunity to express our sincere gratitude to His Excellency for his immense contributions, including the special allowances for medical and other corps members, regular feeding augmentation, and the provision of Hilux vehicles to the state coordination office,' Brig. Gen. Ahmed said.
He further encouraged corps members to remain in Borno after their service year and contribute to the state’s development, acknowledging the government’s continuous investment in their welfare.
Providing an update on the ongoing orientation exercise, the NYSC State Coordinator, Alhaji Mohammed Jiya, reported that 991 corps members from the 2024 Batch C Stream 2 are currently undergoing training in Borno State.