NYSC Bars Pregnant Women, Nursing Mothers, Postgraduate Students; Introduces Self-Deployment.

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has barred pregnant women, nursing mothers and postgraduate students from enlisting in the national service across the country, until they are free to participate effectively. This disclosure was made by Director-General of the NYSC, Brig-Gen. Johnson Olawumi during a 2-day pre-mobilisation workshop for the 2015 Batch “B” NYSC programme held in Kaduna.Olawumi stated that the exemption of pregnant women and nursing mothers, as well as post-graduate students from national service was because they would not be able to undergo the four cardinal programmes of the NYSC: mobilisation, orientation, primary assignment and winding-up passing out parade. Olawumi faulted a situation whereby such categories of enlistees would be absent from the stages of the national service, only to resurface for posting to their various places of primary assignments. The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has also introduced a self-deployment system to enable prospective corps members choose where they wish to serve. This was part of resolutions at the end of the 2015 Batch ‘B’ pre-mobilisation workshop.