By Hosea parah, Abuja

The Acting Director General of the National Youth Service Corps, Mrs Christy Uba, has said signing of the scheme’s trust fund bill into law will empower corps members after their service.

Uba made this known on Saturday after the inspection tour of the ongoing construction of 700 male and 700 female bed capacity hostels at the NYSC Camp in Issele Uku, Delta.

According to her, the fund will go a long way to provide resources for NYSC to empower youths by the time they finish their service, as they would have the capital to start their own businesses.

“The fund will create resources for a greater percentage of corps members trained under the NYSC skill acquisition programmes to start up their businesses.

“We have gone far in respect of the NYSC Trust Fund and we are waiting for President Muhammadu Buhari’s assent. The bill is important because it will provide start up capital for the corps members.

“The scheme has been in place since 2012, and there are various skill acquisitions training in camps to harness the potential of corps members.

“After their three weeks in camp, there is what we call post camp training and through these programmes, many of them have become self-employed and employers of labour and it has contributed greatly to national development,” she said.

Also, the Minister of Youths and Sports, Mr. Sunday Dare, commended the state government for its contribution towards youth and national development.

“In Delta NYSC camp, the layout, the templates, the projects ongoing and those that are completed, this is the model we want for all other camps. There is enough infrastructure to serve the corps members.

“We hope that other states will do likewise. I know a couple of states that are doing something like this.

“This is really extensive and I will advise the NYSC Headquarters to get the templates so that they can share with other states that have not started at all.

“NYSC, in a few weeks will be 50 years, and at 50 years we should not be struggling with facilities for NYSC,” he said.

In his remarks the state Commissioner for Youths Development, Mr Ifeanyi Egwunyenga, said that the state government is committed to human capital development and giving youth development a priority in the state.

Egwunyenga said, “The government is doing everything to ensure that youths gets opportunity to develop their capacities and capabilities and the collaboration between the state government and Federal Government vis-a-vis the NYSC scheme.

“It is very necessary that youths should be given adequate opportunities and space to express themselves, develop their potential and be able to add their own value and their own support to nation building.”