Corps Members Are Leaving Edo to Other States Because of Unpaid Allowances – NYSC

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has raised concerns about the increasing number of corps members relocating from Edo State due to poor welfare conditions. Mrs. Frances Ben-Ushie, the NYSC State Coordinator, made this known during the swearing-in ceremony of the 2025 Batch ‘A’ Stream I corps members held over the weekend.

Ben-Ushie identified the lack of feeding support during orientation courses and the non-payment of state allowances as major reasons for the relocation trend. She urged Governor Monday Okpebholo to intervene and resolve these challenges to enhance the effectiveness of NYSC activities in Edo.

The Coordinator highlighted additional issues, including the absence of an annual state subvention to support the camp’s operations, insufficient hostel accommodations, and inadequate facilities for skills acquisition and entrepreneurship training. She emphasized the urgent need for more workshops, laboratories, and expanded hostel space to cater to the growing number of corps members.

Ben-Ushie also pointed out other pressing needs such as the provision of a multipurpose hall, operational vehicles for monitoring corps members, improved electricity and water supply at the orientation camp in Okada, and the completion of the camp’s main access gate. She noted concerns about encroachment on the camp’s land due to a lack of proper demarcation and documentation.

Despite these challenges, Ben-Ushie commended the state government for consistently providing buses to facilitate the movement of corps members to their primary assignments.

Representing Governor Okpebholo at the event, Mrs. Aiyegbeni Balogun, the Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth and Humanitarian Affairs, assured corps members of the government’s commitment to their welfare, safety, and security. He encouraged them to seize the various opportunities in Edo across sectors like agriculture, education, technology, entrepreneurship, and tourism, assuring them that their contributions would leave a lasting impact on the state’s development.