Nigeria Secures UN TOSSD Steering Committee Seat Over TAC Contributions

Nigeria has secured membership of the United Nations Total Official Support for Sustainable Development (TOSSD) Steering Committee, following international recognition of its 38-year Technical Aid Corps programme.
The Director General of the Nigerian Technical Aid Corps (NTAC), Hon. Yusuf Yakub, disclosed this on Monday during a debriefing for 14 medical professionals who returned from Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone after completing their 24-month volunteer assignments.
The returning volunteers, comprising doctors and nurses, were deployed under the Technical Aid Corps (TAC) Scheme to provide medical services in the two West African countries.
Yakub said Nigeria recently reactivated its membership of TOSSD, a United Nations framework that tracks official support for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
He said Nigeria’s contributions to sustainable development in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP) countries were presented at the organisation’s recent meeting, earning widespread commendation.
“After a thorough briefing on what Nigeria has been doing in contributing to the SDGs in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific countries, we were applauded.
“It came as a surprise to many that a Black African country is not only a beneficiary but also a contributor to sustainable development.
“Nigeria was immediately voted into the 28-member Steering Committee. Of the three active African countries in the association, Nigeria is now one of them.
“This is soft power diplomacy that has existed for 38 years. We have deployed more than 10,000 experts to over 40 ACP countries in service to humanity,” he said.
Yakub attributed the feat to President Bola Tinubu’s foreign policy agenda, which he said had strengthened Nigeria’s international humanitarian engagement through technical cooperation.
He said the scheme continued to record remarkable achievements, including the recent deployment of 18 Nigerian professors to tertiary institutions in The Gambia.
According to him, the medical team returning from Guinea-Bissau also made significant contributions to healthcare delivery during its two-year assignment.
Yakub cited the case of a volunteer doctor who successfully delivered a critically ill pregnant woman, prompting the family to name the baby after the Nigerian doctor.
“That is cultural exchange. It is a remarkable achievement and service to humanity,” he said.
He said several former Nigerian volunteers now occupy strategic positions in their host countries.
According to him, two Nigerian volunteers currently serve as vice-chancellors in The Gambia, while others hold positions as deputy vice-chancellors, deans and heads of departments.
He added that a former volunteer drafted The Gambia’s legislative drafting code, while another produced Sierra Leone’s first nursing manual.
Yakub also said a Nigerian volunteer introduced adire textile to Jamaica, where it has gained popularity under the name “Jadire”.
He added that some former students taught by Nigerian volunteers had risen to become ministers in Uganda and Rwanda.
The NTAC boss said the experience gained by volunteers abroad also enriched Nigeria’s education and health sectors upon their return.
Some of the returning volunteers thanked the Federal Government for sustaining the scheme and commended NTAC for providing the platform to serve.
They described their experience as demanding but rewarding, citing language barriers, cultural adaptation and life-saving interventions among the highlights of their mission.
Also speaking, President of the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Chief Dominic Ogakwu, described the TAC Scheme as an effective instrument for promoting Nigeria’s positive image globally.
He called for increased government support to expand the scheme’s reach across more ACP countries.