Gov. Bello Matawalle of Zamfara has said that his administration will commence the payment of special allowance to corps members posted to rural areas in the state.
Matawalle made this known on Monday at the NYSC permanent orientation camp in Tsafe, at the end of the orientation for the 2019 Batch “C” (Stream I) corps members at the camp.
He said that his administration had followed with keen interest the immeasurable contributions of corps members to the government’s drive for sustainable and realistic grassroots policies.
“We appreciate NYSC for being passionately committed to our cause to move our state to greater heights.
“My administration sincerely appreciates this and will make payment of special allowances to corps members serving in rural communities as a show of encouragement for accepting to serve in the rural areas.
“I will also direct the local government councils, traditional rulers and village heads to give you rousing welcome and fully integrate you into their midst so that you can achieve your optimal best,” the governor said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor was represented at the occasion by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Bala Maru.
He advised the corps members to use the diverse knowledge and skills they had acquired in the last three weeks to bring to bear in their places of primary assignment, which, he said, would be useful in their service year.
“The NYSC has, in response to the realities of the present-day high rate of unemployment, introduced the Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) for the corps members on camp.
“This is a welcome development to equip the corps members with skills to make them engage in profitable ventures, even during the service year.
“I, therefore, implore you to explore every opportunity that comes your way through conscious interactions with your host communities,” Matawalle said.
Earlier, the State NYSC Coordinator, Mr Namala Taura, thanked the state government, under the leadership of Gov. Matawalle, for sending its engineers to assess areas requiring repairs or improvement preparatory to implementation.
He also thanked the state government for its prompt response to the needs of the scheme in the state.
Taura urged the 2,100 corps members under the Batch “C” (Stream I) to be of good conduct and respect the culture of their host communities.