Is NYSC saying goodbye to khaki? All you need to know about the planned Adire uniform, new posting system and other major change

• NYSC's traditional khaki uniform will be replaced with Adire fabric to promote Nigerian textile production.

• Corps members will increasingly be posted based on their courses of study and professional qualifications.

• The government is considering posting graduates to familiar regions to reduce security concerns and redeployment requests.

• The military is not leaving NYSC; only the scheme's operational leadership will become civilian-led while the military continues providing security.

For decades, one thing every Nigerian graduate expected after getting their call-up letter was the famous NYSC khaki uniform. But that could soon become history.

The Federal Government has confirmed plans to replace the traditional khaki with Adire fabric as part of a major overhaul of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

The confirmation came from the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, during an appearance on Channels Television's The Morning Brief on Thursday.

According to the minister, the move is part of efforts to support local industries and ensure government spending benefits Nigerian businesses instead of foreign manufacturers.

Responding to questions about where the new uniforms would come from, Olawande said:

"It's Adire. So, Adire is being produced in Nigeria. We have them in Ogun, we have them in Kwara, we have textile industry. Let's put our money back into the country."

Another major change is how corps members will be deployed after orientation camp.

Instead of the current system where graduates can be posted almost anywhere regardless of their course of study, the government wants postings to match people's qualifications.

For example, education graduates would be sent to schools, while those with other professional backgrounds could be deployed to places where their skills are actually needed.

Explaining the idea, Olawande said: "That after you are leaving the camp, you are not just posted to a school just because NYSC wants you to be in school but because of the process you followed when in camp. So, that is going to give a framework of where you are going to be posted to."

READ ALSO: Nigerian graduate leaves China speechless with perfect Mandarin graduation speech (VIDEO)

The minister also said the government is looking at a more practical way of posting corps members to states affected by insecurity.

Rather than sending graduates to unfamiliar places and then dealing with redeployment requests, the proposal is to deploy more people to areas where they studied or are already familiar with the environment.

According to him: "If we have a particular area that is having insecurity, instead of probably forcing people or parents to start talking, we must also give them an opportunity that 'okay, who are those in that area, that schooled in that area, that know much about that area?'"

He added: "If you have interest that you want to go to the North-East why not, but if you don't have interest, instead of redeploying you, paying people for camp, doing all those funny things, we said no, let us look at it and say who are those in that area, that can reside in those geographical areas and still give us the kind of number we are looking for since we are saying NYSC should be more impactful. So, that is what we are talking about."

Olawande also addressed rumours that the military would no longer be involved in NYSC.

He dismissed the reports, saying they were based on a misunderstanding of the reforms.

According to him, the military will continue to provide security and support for the scheme. The only difference is that the operational leadership of NYSC will now be headed by a civilian instead of a military officer.

"We are not taking the military out of NYSC, it's just a misconception and the way we read some of the things that were put out and that is the aspect that we need to start making research before reacting. Military is not taken away, there is no how you can take the military away. It is just saying that we are moving away from military mobilisation to civilian mobilisation," he said.

READ ALSO: Nigerian man allegedly created a fake government agency and secured a ₦1.3bn budget allocation (see video)

The reforms were approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) earlier this week, marking the first major restructuring of the NYSC since it was established over 50 years ago.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and the Ministry of Youth Development have also been directed to amend the NYSC Act and other regulations to make the reforms possible.

According to the Federal Government, the goal is to transform the scheme from mainly a national service programme into one that focuses more on skills, productivity, youth empowerment and economic development.

For many prospective corps members, however, one question is already trending online: will Adire survive parade ground drills and the Nigerian sun better than khaki?