The Federal Government had in July 2024 announced an increase in the allowance paid to corps members, commonly referred to as “allawee”.

Corps members were elated over this new development. Corps members of the 2023 Batch C and 2024 Batch B, who were in service at the time, waited endlessly to receive the increased allowance.

Days rolled into weeks and weeks into months, these corps members completed their service year and never received it.

Olabode, a corps member of the 2024 Batch C, was deployed to the Bauchi State Orientation Camp in January. Like other corps members who had been promised the new allawee before him, he waited endlessly.

The corps member did not have to wait so long, as the Federal Government began paying the allawee in March.

He told The Guardian he was happy about the increase. His joy, however, began to fade when he factored in the present economic realities.

Three months after he began receiving the new allawee of N77,000, Olabode soon realised it was insufficient.

“I was happy about the increase but considering the economic realities, I knew it was not going to be enough. But I was happy at first,” said Olabode.

From promise to fulfilment, then plight

The National Youth Service Scheme (NYSC) is a mandatory one-year program established by the Nigerian Government in 1973 under Decree No. 24, signed by the then military head of state, Yakubu Gowon.

The programme was created to foster national unity and integration among the country’s diverse ethnic groups as the country had just come out of a civil war.

It requires Nigerian graduates from universities and polytechnics within and outside Nigeria who are below the age of 30 at the time of graduation to serve the country for one year.

These graduates are deployed to different states across the country and work in different sectors in both the private and public parastatals.

The allawee is periodically reviewed to reflect economic realities. For example, it was increased from N19,800 to N33,000 in 2020 and later to N77,000 in March 2025.

The inflation rate has been rising every year since 2016. It only stopped rising when the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) carried out a major rebasing exercise for both GDP and CPI in January.

The inflation rate has reduced since then, but the prices of goods and services are at an all-time high despite this.

The new allawee was not paid in 2024 despite several promises made by the Federal Government to corps members.

Despite these adjustments, many corps members like Olabode argue that the allowance remains insufficient due to rising inflation and living costs.

Olabode, who serves in a tertiary institution in Bauchi, told The Guardian that the new allawee is only “manageable” because he does not pay for accommodation.

“Honestly speaking, the money is not enough if you include housing. I am only lucky my PPA gave me accommodation. So the 77k is manageable for feeding and transportation”.

He added that he spends roughly N100,000 every month.

“If I manage, I spend over N100,000. It is not sufficient because the economy has outgrown the N77,000. It cannot conveniently sustain one for three weeks, not to mention a month,” Olabode added.

Living wage or a drop in the bucket?

Other corps members expressed similar opinions about the new allawee.

In interviews with them, they told The Guardian that while N77,000 sounds better than previous allowances, it still falls short for many corps members, especially those serving in high-cost areas.

Nkechi*, a corps member serving in Kwara, told The Guardian that she spends over N150,000 monthly, which is double the amount the Federal Government pays as allawee.

“On average, I spend over N150,000 monthly. This covers feeding, transport, data and airtime, toiletries, savings and miscellaneous needs. Unexpected expenses can push it higher.

“The current allawee is insufficient as the cost of living keeps rising – food prices, transportation fares, and basic services have become significantly more expensive.

“While N77,000 might sound better than previous allowances, it still falls short for many corps members especially those serving in high cost areas,” said Nkechi.

Garba*, another corps member serving in Bauchi, voiced similar views.

“The N77,000 allowance is quite insufficient to cover all my basic needs. Feeding costs around 30-40k monthly, leaving limited funds for transportation. I often have to prioritise needs and make sacrifices,” he told The Guardian.

Taking on side hustles

Garba, Olabode and Nkechi all told The Guardian that many corps members, including them, take side hustles to augment the allawee.

“Many corps members including myself take on part-time jobs, freelance work or sell products online to supplement our allowance,” Garba told The Guardian.

Olabode said he also works as a photographer, and the money he makes as a photographer goes into other costs that the N77,000 allawee cannot cover.

Nkechi, on the other hand, works in the hospitality management industry and sells food. Like Samuel, the wages she makes from this are used to augment the allawee.

When The Guardian asked them how much they consider an ideal allowance for corps members, Olabode and Garba said amounts ranging from N150,000 to N200,000 are ideal.

Another corps member who serves in Delta State objected, noting that the corps members should be paid different sums of money depending on the locations they are deployed to.

“I believe that depending on the standard of living in each state, food items are significantly cheaper in some regions, such as the north and southwest, but not in others.

“There should not be a uniform allowance for corps members serving in the southern region,” the corps member said.

Editor’s Note: Names of corps members marked with an asterisk have been changed to protect their identities, as they were not authorized to speak with the press.