NYSC mobilises 200,000 corps members for sanitation

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) said it would mobilise 200,000 youth corps members across the country for the monthly environmental sanitation exercises in their various host communities.

The director-general of the corps, Brigadier-General Johnson Olawumi, said this in Akure, the Ondo State capital, at the inauguration of the NYSC/state governments collaboration on monthly environmental sanitation exercise.

He said the scheme was put in place to further ensure the contribution of the corps members to the development of the communities where they have their primary assignment.

He also said that corps members would be taught skills on how to construct and maintain incinerators in their various host communities, and to recycle some of the waste and turn them into wealth.

Olawumi said: “Ultimately, this will reduce incidents of illness associated with poor sanitation thereby, building a crop of healthy citizens who can contribute to the socio-economic development of the nation.”

He said the programme was in fulfilment of his vision for the scheme which is “to increase the impact of the scheme and expand its value to critical stakeholders.”

He further said that the programme would enable corps members to render selfless service by helping to maintain a safe and sustainable environment in the country.

Olawumi said, “however, for the NYSC scheme to effectively render service and contribute meaningfully to national development, we need to partner and collaborate with all stakeholders and that is why we are keying into the monthly environmental sanitation programme of state governments.

“Through this, we can directly render service to the entire citizenry by ensuring that our cities, towns and villages are kept clean through proper waste disposal”.

He noted that before now, corps members had sanitation community development groups which comprised a few corps members, adding that the new initiative was, however, designed to involve all corps members.

The Commissioner for Environment in the state, Chief Sola Ebiseni, however urged the NYSC to increase the participation of the corps members in environmental issues in the state.

He said they should be involved in tree planting, channelisation and other environment related activities.

Tweet