Brigadier General Yushau Ahmed, the Director General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), has confirmed that the recent increment in corps members' allowance has not been effectuated due to budgetary constraints.
A report by Circleson Television highlighted the approval by the Federal Government to raise corps members' monthly allowance from N33,000 to N77,000, effective from July 2024.
The announcement, as per a statement by the NYSC on its official Facebook page, was conveyed in a letter from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, dated September 25, 2024, and signed by the Chairman, Mr. Ekpo Nta.
Despite the official communication, corps members did not receive the increased allowance in their September monthly stipend, as they were disbursed N33,000 instead of the approved N77,000.
In a statement to BBC Hausa service, the NYSC DG clarified that while approval for the increment was in place, the government had not disbursed the necessary funds to the scheme for the implementation of the new allowance.
He said, “Not only the corps members, even our staff members’ salary has been increased about four to five months ago, but it has not been implemented yet. We are hopeful that the new pay will be implemented soon, but the funds have not been released to us yet.
“The information we have did not specify when the new allowance will be paid, but we were assured that their monthly allowance has been increased from 29th July 2024.”