BENEFITS OF SERVING IN THE RURAL AREAS
Hey guys, it’s Steve again. Today, we shall be discussing the common belief by corps members that it is best to serve in the urban areas. A lot of prospective corp members detest the idea of serving in villages so they do everything in their power to serve in cities like Abuja, Lagos, Port-Harcourt, etc.
I know you have considered this thought yourself and might even be making plans for it. But do you know that there are some advantages attached to serving in the rural areas which in some cases might even outweigh benefits enjoyed in the urban areas? Let us go through them briefly.
Low Cost of Living
Cost of living is relatively cheap for corps members serving in the rural areas compared to their counterparts in the cities. Food and other basic comodities are cheap; cost of transportation is low plus there are free accomodations. Corps members in this category can easily save their monthly stipends and have something to fall back on after their service year.
High Regards
Corps members are held in high regards in the rural areas because a lot of the folks there see graduates as people who have accomplished something in life. This is erroneous belief of course but the villagers nonetheless take the welfare of corpers seriously and shower them with gifts occasionally. You can’t find this happening in the urban areas because almost every family has produced enough graduates or aspiring graduates.
Serenity and Peace of Mind
Rural areas are peaceful and quiet. Major sources of noise which abounds in cities are not common in the rural areas. This is a great benefit to many corps members who would like to live a pre-meditated life as they ponder on important issues of life that can impact their future.
Exemption from CDS Meetings
Corps members serving in villages don’t attend the compulsory weekly CDS which means they have one work-free day every week to do something for themselves. If you are the lazy type, you could use the time to sleep at home or chase after ladies/guys.
Viable Business Opportunities
The food items sold in the cities are grown in the villages. Household consumables like pure honey, red oil, ogbono seed and the likes are high selling items that can be purchased at cheaper rates in the rural areas. This is a viable business opportunity for corps members who are business oriented. The reason why you find Igbos scattered across the Nigerian villages is because they identify profitable business opportunities ahead of any tribe.
There you have it. Did I miss out on anything? Drop the comments in the box below.
In the next article, we shall be discussing the benefits of serving in the urban areas.