BOI launches N2bn loan scheme for corpers to boost entrepreneurship, job creation

The Bank of Industry (BOI) has launched a N2 billion entrepreneurship programme to provide affordable loans to members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), in a push to tackle unemployment through job creation and promote youth-led enterprises across Nigeria.

The programme allows eligible corps members to access up to N5 million each at a single-digit interest rate of 9 per cent per annum, repayable over three years, with a three-month moratorium on both principal and interest payments.

The initiative signals a growing national effort to equip young Nigerians with financial tools and entrepreneurial support essential for navigating the country’s challenging economic landscape.

The initiative, tagged the ‘N2bn BOI–NYSC entrepreneurship programme’, was unveiled in Abuja by Olasupo Olusi, BOI managing director, who was represented by Shekarau Omar, executive director for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) at the bank.

Olusi said the initiative forms part of the bank’s broader strategy to empower young Nigerians with the financial support, capacity-building, and mentorship required to grow sustainable enterprises.

“This partnership between BOI and NYSC builds on earlier collaborations such as the Graduate Entrepreneurship Fund (GEF), which trained over 3,000 graduates, financed 609 businesses, and disbursed more than N1 billion in loans,” he said.

“These numbers are not just statistics, they represent poultry farms, fashion houses, tech start-ups, and creative studios brought to life. When young people receive targeted training, affordable finance, and mentoring, they repay, they employ, and they grow.”

Olusi praised the NYSC’s Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) department for its ongoing efforts to equip corps members with practical business skills. He added that the new loan scheme would further enhance the department’s impact by providing much-needed financial backing for trained entrepreneurs.

He also encouraged corps members to demonstrate discipline and innovation during their service year, stressing that the success of the initiative would be measured by the number of loans approved, jobs created, and businesses that remain viable beyond the service period.

In his remarks, Olakunle Nafiu, NYSC director-general, commended BOI for its continued support, urging the bank to expand the fund to n5 billion in order to reach more beneficiaries nationwide.

Nafiu noted that BOI and NYSC have worked together since 2012 to foster youth entrepreneurship and skill development through the SAED programme. He added that the latest initiative reaffirms their shared vision of building sustainable livelihoods for the over 400,000 corps members who participate in the NYSC scheme each year.

The new BOI–NYSC entrepreneurship programme follows last month’s announcement of a similar partnership between the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP) and the NYSC, which provides corps members with access to personal credit facilities.

Ngozi Ekugo

Ngozi Ekugo is a Senior Correspondent at BusinessDay. She holds a Masters in management from the University of Lagos, an undergraduate from University of Lagos, and is in an alumni of Queen's College. Shes currently an associate member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM). She has a brief experience at Goldman sachs, London in its Human Capital Management division. She is interested in human capital development and is leveraging her varied experience across sectors to report labour and global mobility trends for stakeholders to make informed decisions.