Abuja—President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has invoked provisions in Sections 2(4)(4) and 16(1)(C) of the NYSC Act, and approved a far-reaching reform which makes compliance with the National Policy for the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank, NERD, a mandatory requirement for mobilisation into or exemption from the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC.
The compliance directive was contained in Item 2(ix) in an enforcement circular recently issued by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, who conveyed the approval for the adjustment of “NYSC mobilisation criteria in accordance with the President’s regulation requiring proof of NERD Policy compliance for all prospective Corps members, regardless of where they were educated.”
Apart from provisions in the policy meant to check certificate racketeering and the abuse of honours conferred on individuals by academic institutions, one of the new mandatory requirements of Nigerian students contained in the federal government’s policy is the deposit of scholarly outputs, which include thesis or project reports.
In Section 6.1.23 of the policy, the requirement is designed: “as a quality assurance check and as a yearly independent proof of continuous academic enrolment and affiliation” as it is expected to inviolably time-stamp scholarship, academic activities, and footprint regardless of location.
Recall that in March 2025, while issuing the declaration of effectiveness for NERD, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, stated that “the approved stipulations for mandatory submission of academic outputs as provided in Sections 2.3, 4.3(1), and 7.6.11(c), among others, of the approved National Policy for the NERD Programme shall become obligatory requirements in Nigeria.
