The National Youth Service Corps has attributed the accommodation crisis at some orientation camps across the country to the rising number of graduates mobilised annually for the mandatory national service programme.
The Director-General of the scheme, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, made the clarification while addressing members of the 2026 Batch C Stream II at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Sagamu, Ogun State.
The Director of Information and Public Relations of the scheme, Caroline Embu, disclosed this in a statement on Friday titled, ‘Rising Corps Population Puts Pressure on NYSC Camp Facilities.’
The DG said the annual mobilisation figure had increased from about 400,000 in 2025 to approximately 450,000 this year, putting pressure on existing facilities and resources.
He also projected that the figure could rise to between 500,000 and 600,000 within the next three to five years, warning of the need for additional infrastructure to accommodate the growing number of prospective corps members.
The statement quoted the DG as attributing the accommodation challenges to the “steady increase in the number of graduates mobilised for national service annually.”
“He explained that the growing number of graduates seeking to participate in the national service programme had placed considerable pressure on the Scheme’s existing infrastructure and resources, particularly accommodation facilities in orientation camps,” the statement added.
The development comes days after a viral video showing prospective corps members sleeping in cramped conditions at the Sagamu orientation camp sparked widespread outrage and renewed concerns about the welfare of participants in the national service programme.
The footage, which circulated on social media on November 9, showed scores of prospective corps members lying on mattresses arranged closely together on the floor of a multipurpose hall, leaving little room for movement.
The incident, which attracted criticism from Nigerians, also raised questions about the preparedness of the NYSC to accommodate the growing number of graduates deployed for the orientation exercise.
Reacting to the controversy, the Ogun State Government said the camp, popularly known as the Five-Star Camp, was designed to accommodate slightly more than 2,000 corps members per batch but received more than 4,300 prospective corps members for the current exercise.
The Special Adviser to Governor Dapo Abiodun on Media and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, described the arrangement as temporary, explaining that those whose registration and screening extended into the night were accommodated in the multipurpose hall pending the completion of the exercise and allocation of hostel spaces.
However, in its latest response, the NYSC said that, notwithstanding the Federal Government’s commitment to addressing the challenges, additional infrastructure would require substantial financial resources and time, “especially in view of competing national priorities such as security, education, road construction and other critical development projects.”
Nafiu said responsibility for maintaining and expanding orientation camps was shared between the Federal and state governments, noting that the facilities were owned by the respective state governments.
He said the scheme was engaging state governments to encourage the expansion of existing facilities and address accommodation deficits across the country.
The DG added that the increasing mobilisation figures had made it necessary for the NYSC to review its planning projections and adopt more comprehensive measures to accommodate prospective corps members.
According to the statement, the scheme had learnt lessons from previous orientation exercises and would henceforth make more extensive provisions to cater for possible increases in the number of participants.
Nafiu also apologised to corps members over the accommodation challenges and discomfort experienced at the Ogun State camp, assuring them that the scheme would continue to engage relevant authorities to improve their welfare.
Meanwhile, the Ogun State Coordinator of the NYSC, Mrs Omolabake Adewuyi, disclosed that 4,315 corps members had been registered for the ongoing orientation exercise.
She said 3,834 of them were deployed to Ogun State, while the remaining 481, who were originally deployed to Lagos State, were temporarily accommodated in Ogun for the orientation exercise before proceeding to their respective places of primary assignment in Lagos.
Adewuyi said adequate security personnel had been deployed within and around the camp to ensure the safety of corps members, camp officials and visitors.
The coordinator also disclosed that construction of an additional hostel block was ongoing at the camp to increase its accommodation capacity and improve facilities for subsequent orientation exercises.
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