The Directorate of the Technical Aid Corps (TAC) has commenced its 14th biennial orientation course for approximately 1,500 volunteers who will be traveling to different part of the world.
The volunteers who are professionals specialized in different fields would be sent to 43 less developed countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific, for two years.
They will work in various fields of endeavour, to impart some Nigerian expertise to their host countries, as part of efforts to contribute to these countries’ development.
Speaking at the opening session of the orientation course in Akure, the Ondo State capital, the Director-General of the Directorate of the Technical Aid Corps, Pius Osunyikanmi, commended the Federal Government for showing renewed interest in the programme by increasing the number of participants from 200 to over 1,500.
He added that the volunteers were chosen through a competitive process that was purely merit driven.
The Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko, however advised the volunteers to see the programme as an opportunity for them to learn from the practices in those countries. He also highlighted the possibility of building relationships that would add value to their future plans.
“Some of you who are smart would make lifelong contacts that will change your lives completely, in terms of opportunities”, he said.
The Technical Aid Corps, TAC, was established by the military administration of Ibrahim Babangida in 1987. Volunteers are recruited strictly on the basis of request from the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States, ACP.
