President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved new regulations making the submission of academic thesis or project reports a mandatory requirement for mobilisation into the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The directive, which takes effect from October 6, 2025, was conveyed through an enforcement circular signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume.
The move is part of enforcing the National Education Repository and Databank (NERD) policy, which aims to digitise and preserve academic works across Nigeria’s institutions. The goal is to tackle certificate fraud, improve academic quality, and make sure every graduate’s work adds to Nigeria’s body of knowledge.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, said the policy also allows students and their lecturers to earn from their academic work, which will be stored in a national digital platform.
NERD spokesperson, Haula Galadima, explained that each submission must include the names of the student, supervisor(s), Head of Department, and the institution. “This will improve the quality of supervision and discourage poor academic work,” she said.
From March 30 every year, schools and organisations must submit compliance reports. Existing NYSC members or graduates mobilised before October 6 are not affected.
