NYSC Didn’t Ban Pregnant Women, Nursing Mothers From Service — DG

The Director-General, National Youth Service Corps, Brig. Gen. Johnson Olawumi, has said the NYSC did not ban pregnant women and nursing women from its orientation camps. The director-general stated that because of the challenges pregnant women and nursing mothers face, they were only advised to take good care of themselves and come to the camps after being fit to withstand the rigours involved in camping activities. Olawumi said, “We did not ban pregnant women and nursing
mothers from orientation camps. In the past, we have had cases where pregnant women and nursing mothers came to camps to participant in the NYSC activities. These are people who should come for service but rather we see ourselves managing them. So, what we are saying is that ‘if you are pregnant, why don’t you go and deliver, then when you are okay, you can come for the national service. It is in their interest and also to give effectiveness to what we are doing in the scheme. He also urged state governors to continue to support the activities of the NYSC in their respective states.According to him, there is a reduction in the subventions and support from some governors while others still support activities of the national service scheme. Olawumi added that some governors had continued to show enthusiasm towards the programmes and activities of the corps. He, however, noted that lack of funds and other state obligations could be responsible for the low subventions and support from some of the governors. The DG also said NYSC had not banned pregnant women and nursing mothers from its orientation camps. He added that the NYSC would continue to unite the corps members to boost inter-personal relationship across the country.
Punch