He said “As the welfare and safety of corps members and staff is part of the policy thrust of my administration, we shall continue to work closely with relevant shareholders to evolve strategies for the protection of all corps members and the entire corps community during the orientation course.

“This workshop will enable top management, collaborating partners and other critical stakeholders to review the previous orientation courses with a view to improving the scheme's performance in subsequent exercises.

“We worked closely with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and state ministries of health in this regard. However, we would use the opportunity of the workshop to, among other things, harness our experiences and explore the prospect of increasing camp capacity, without losing sight of the need to adhere strictly to COVID -19 safety protocols, as we learn to operate optimally under the 'new normal."

The state governor, Abdullahi Sule, who was represented by the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Alhaji Othman Bala Adam, said the NYSC inventions of COVID-19 protective materials such as facemasks, hand sanitisers, sample collection box, temperature detection device, including the medical team would also help to stem the tide of the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic.