The Federal Government has Okayed a 50 per cent increase in the feeding allowance for Nigerian inmates, effective from August 2024, this according to federal government is to ameliorate the rising cost of food and improve inmate welfare. Spokesperson for the Nigeria Correctional Service, Abubakar Umar, made this known during an interview with PUNCH Online this afternoon.
According to Umar, this is “first phase” of a broader review intended to enhance living conditions for inmates.
He said, “The inmate feeding allowance has been increased by 50 per cent, effective from August 2024. This is just the first phase”.
Explaining further, Umar explained that other reviews would follow, particularly due to the soaring cost of food.
“The FG will also consider additional reviews. This is just the first phase. Normally, there is a period when inmate feeding allowances are reviewed. Following a presentation during the budget process, the FG deemed it necessary to adjust the allowance due to the rising cost of food. Further adjustments are expected,” Umar added.
According to the latest figures from the NCoS, Nigeria currently has a total of 84,575 inmates across all prisons.
According to year the 2024 budget year, the NCoS has been allocated over N24.4 billion as cost for catering materials and foodstuffs for the inmates.
Going through the breakdown as for public consumption it was revealed that in December 2023 the Controller General of the NCoS, Haliru Nababa, revealed a sum of N750 was being allocated per day for each prisoner, while N800 was spent daily on feeding each of the 900 dogs in the service.
Inmate welfare issues gained attention recently after a viral video from the Afokang Custodial Centre in Calabar, Cross River State, showed inmates being served poorly cooked meals.
The viral video sparked public outrage and led to an investigation ordered by the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, into the conditions at the facility.
The NCoS confirmed that the investigation is ongoing, emphasising that the incident does not reflect the overall standards of care and commitment to inmate welfare across the country.