The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has initiated a major restructuring of its Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme aimed at equipping Corps Members with relevant, future-focused skills required for today’s workplace and sustainable entrepreneurship. The reform involves the standardisation of the SAED curriculum to enhance effectiveness, depth, and alignment with the demands of a fast-evolving economy.
The Director General of NYSC, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, made this known during the second SAED stakeholders’ summit for 2025, held in Abuja under the theme “Empowering a Generation: Building Competence for the Future Workplace and Enterprise Through Impactful Partnerships.” According to him, the programme is undergoing digital transformation as part of efforts to significantly reduce youth unemployment, with the introduction of modern skill areas such as artificial intelligence, mobile application development, and other in-demand digital competencies.
Nafiu explained that Corps Members are now being actively linked to the Federal Government’s 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme, as well as global remote work opportunities through platforms including Outsource to Nigeria, NYSC jobs.ng, and the SAED Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) toolkit. He revealed that since the introduction of SAED in 2012, more than 3.18 million Corps Members have undergone entrepreneurship and workplace readiness training, while over 30,000 businesses established by Corps Members have been officially registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
“These Corps entrepreneurs are not only creating employment opportunities but are also making measurable contributions to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product. This clearly demonstrates that young Nigerians possess the capacity to drive positive change,” Nafiu stated. He stressed that competence, strong mastery of SAED skill sets, and digital proficiency are essential for making Corps Members competitive in the global labour market.
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The NYSC boss also drew attention to the recently introduced ₦2 billion Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) loan fund for Corps Entrepreneurs, launched in collaboration with the Bank of Industry (BoI). He described the initiative as a major milestone in providing financial backing for youth-led enterprises. Nafiu further acknowledged the vision of the founding fathers of the NYSC scheme, noting that they laid a solid foundation for entrepreneurship training several decades ago. He emphasised that continuous investment in employable skills remains critical, given Nigeria’s growing youth population.
Providing context with labour statistics, Nafiu noted that Nigeria’s unemployment rate stood at 1.9 per cent in 1973 but has risen to 6.9 per cent in recent times. He pointed out that a significant number of young Nigerians still lack the skills required to remain competitive in the modern workforce. “Strengthening collaboration with our SAED partners is essential if we are to reverse this trend and create meaningful opportunities for our youths,” he added.
Earlier in his remarks, the Director of SAED, Mr Kehinde Aremu-Cole, commended stakeholders for their active role in driving innovation and growth across sectors such as technology, the creative economy, entrepreneurship, financial inclusion, and agriculture. He underscored the broader vision of the programme, stating, “This is more than a programme; it is a generational investment. We must continue to empower and believe in the immense potential of our young people.”
The revamped SAED initiative reflects NYSC’s renewed determination to prepare Nigerian youths for the future by integrating entrepreneurship education, advanced digital skills, and access to financial support, with the goal of stimulating employment, enterprise development, and long-term economic growth.
