NSS holds orientation for KNUST students

The National Service Scheme (NSS) has organised a pre-service orientation programme for prospective national service personnel from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi.

The orientation programme was to take the students through the new NSS policy and the registration process and to also allow the students to ask questions about the scheme.

New policy

Addressing the students, the Executive Director of the NSS, Osei Assibey Antwi, said unlike the previous years where personnel were deployed without taking into consideration their course of study, the new policy of the scheme was such that all the prospective personnel would be deployed to areas that would require their expertise.

He said the new focus of the scheme was to deploy students to areas where they would be able to gain or become self-employed after their national service.

For instance, he said national service personnel, who were sent to the classroom, would be given training on pedagogic studies to equip them with skills required for teaching.

He said with this, those desirous to become teachers could upgrade and do a diploma in education and sit for the licensure examination to become teachers.

Agri-business

He said through the support of the Mastercard Foundation, those willing to go into agri-business would be supported to establish their businesses after their national service and pay back through their produce.

The objective, he said, was to ensure that graduates used their skills in the areas relevant to their course of study and contribute their quota to national development.

He entreated the personnel to be good ambassadors of their families and institutions at their place of work and not to give the institutions cause to reject them.

He said there had been instances where some of the institutions wrote to the NSS to withdraw some of the personnel for insubordination and indecent dressing.