Favour Ikhile is a dentist, a social entrepreneur, and a youth advocate. On Thursday, he completed his compulsory National Youth Service Corps at the Central Hospital in Agbor, Delta State, where he was the president of his medical and health Community Development Service (CDS) group. In this interview by KINGSLEY ALUMONA he speaks about how he impacted his fellow corps members and the community he served.
As a dentistry graduate, you finished your housemanship before commencing your NYSC service. Which hospital and state did you do the housemanship? And how did it impact your life?
I completed my compulsory housemanship training as a dentist at the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba, Delta State, being among the pioneer set of dental house officers. I am super excited to have been trained at a centre where interns were allowed, under supervision, to do several clinical procedures themselves. We had regular weekly presentations and monthly departmental meetings, and as a dentist, I was taught how to suture, extract teeth, carry out space analysis, bond orthodontic brackets, and transfuse patients independently.
I assisted with some surgical extractions weekly, did root canal therapy, and carried out some crown preparations for anterior teeth, all under supervision. That’s the beauty of being trained in a Federal Medical Centre.
My centre remains one of the few teledentistry-enabled facilities in the country, with a nearly constant power supply. Also, the accommodation was top-notch — a well-furnished apartment with a spacious parking lot in front of it.
Before your NYSC service, what were your expectations of the scheme?
Before my NYSC, I would say my expectation was quite simple. I believed that I might have to endure for one year. And, so, this mindset helped me prepare for the worse. As a doctor, one of my expectations was that I would receive a lower pay in comparison to my internship year. The reason behind the lower pay for NYSC healthcare workers generally, in comparison to their internship year, may be justified that NYSC is a call to serve one’s nation, but this could be improved nationally to reflect their newly attained status after the internship year.
Which state were you deployed for the national service and where was your place of primary assignment (PPA)?
I was deployed to Delta State and my PPA was the Central Hospital, Agbor. At first, when I received my posting letter, I had mixed feelings. I was a bit shocked, not knowing what to expect, especially when I was told that I may not be paid monthly by the board while in service. But then, I had to face my fears headlong and report almost immediately.
Tell us about the Community Development Service (CDS) group you belonged to, and your position and role in the group.
I belonged to the medical and health CDS group. I had the opportunity to contest for the office of the president and won. My manifesto was simple and lucid. After winning, I called for an emergency meeting with my executives and got their support to make our tenure very unique. We immediately gave ourselves a name — The Innovative Excos — and set out to do things innovatively.
Thereafter, I instituted immediate policy changes that resulted in increased CDS finance by over 400 per cent of the initial money handed over to us, without increasing levies on members. Secondly, I also instituted immediate policy changes that resulted in over 50 per cent rise in CDS meeting attendance, recording one of highest average attendance to meetings for a sustained period in recent years. Lastly, as president, I was able to purchase some new medical equipment (Glucometer, Sphygmomanometer, etc) and medical consumables for the secretariat’s proposed clinic and improved the outlook of the medical and health CDS meetings venue by purchasing its first curtains.
As someone into youth leadership and social entrepreneurship, how did you use these aspects of your career to impact your fellow corps members?
I’m always proud to share what I do as a social entrepreneur. This is one area some youths might consider exploring, as it offers both social impact and finance in return. Who doesn’t want to get paid for impacting lives?
I chose to impact my fellow corps members for free and delay gratification till the results started showing. I introduced ‘Opportunity Corner’ during each CDS meeting and during these sessions, offered advice to corps members about the usefulness of personal development. I also encouraged members to share opportunities on the platform and offered free peer mentorship to those who chatted me up.
The use of technology is something youths need to embrace in Nigeria. During your service year, were you able to organise any programme on how technology can be leveraged for social good and development?
Yes! I hosted a hybrid international conference in partnership with the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) to awaken GEN-Zs and Millennials in Nigeria and others who joined virtually from 15 countries to leverage technology for social good. I directed the affairs of the planning committee remotely from my PPA for over four months.
You have been into youth mentorship before your national service. Did you help your fellow corps members get into any reputable mentorship programmes?
Yes, I was able to assist five corps members get into the KECTIL programme, a web-based one-year leadership training programme that culminates in a trip to the United States for exceptional trainees. I have previously travelled to Georgia Tech in Atlanta, fully funded through KECTIL. So, I decided to help others get into the programme.
I also hosted remote trainings on web design and soft-skill development for corps members in Nassarawa and Delta states.
In what other ways were you able to impact the youths, especially in the acquisition of soft skills, in the course of your service year?
As a youth employment advocate, two months into NYSC, I launched a youth employment-focused programme called the Prestigious Global Mentorship Programme (PGMP), which became famous on notable platforms like Opportunity Desk and over 10 international media platforms for youth opportunities.
This biannual programme can now be found on a simple Google search. This idea, which has been worked on since 2020 and tested at the local level for a few years, now impacts over 300 youths yearly in more than 20 nations.
These youths learn remotely and are mentored by global experts from over 20 countries. Upon completion of the three-month engagement, they get matched to interested firms as paid interns for three months.
Looking back now, how would you describe the way your PPA and the community you served treated you? Would you miss them?
I will miss the community, especially the NYSC secretariat. I was treated like a king and the mutual respect was palpable. Deltans are very friendly.
For my PPA, I’m glad to have worked with all the departmental and hospital staff. Most were quite friendly. Some things I tried to practice were: listening more than I speak, never taking sides with anyone in an argument, not participating in gossip, and displaying emotional intelligence when dealing with those who might be overbearing.
I think these tips could be helpful to those in service or considering NYSC anytime soon.
What were the major challenges your PPA faced when you were there and how do you think these challenges could be addressed?
My PPA was a good place. A few concerns were just the corper’s lodge, which could be renovated, and there were occasional issues with water supply and electricity sometimes. However, most of these were addressed after some advocacy steps were taken.
There are calls on the Federal Government to scrap the NYSC scheme. Are you for or against this call?
No, I do not think the NYSC should be scrapped. Almost everyone refers to the camping experience because it has a positive mind-conditioning impact on graduates.
What are the major challenges you think are facing corps members across the country and how do you think the government can help in this regard?
Well, I’d try to highlight two: security and funding.
Corps members need to be sure of their security wherever they are posted. At the local and state governments’ levels, security agencies should continue to be friendly to corp members, even on the highway.
Secondly, some corps members are either underpaid or not paid. The government could look into this.
When I lost significant savings to an online fraudster at the commencement of my national service, I seriously contemplated ending my NYSC, since I learnt the Hospital Management Board do not operate a monthly salary payment scheme. With nothing to fall back to, I had to rely on my skills to bounce back in no time through rewarding youth-focused social entrepreneurial ideas by putting my developed writing and programme management skills to profitable use.
Eventually, I was buoyant enough to host the hybrid young changemakers’ conference for the 7th consecutive time (debt-free), to impact youths in Nigeria and 15 other countries in November 2023. This conference was held successfully in Abuja. It was planned completely remotely and I flew down to create impact as has been my yearly routine from my undergraduate days.
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