Criminologists to tackle Nigeria’s prison reform at Abuja conference

• We need to address 53, 811 awaiting trial inmates

By Taiwo Oluwadare, Ibadan

Against the backdrop of challenges facing the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), scholars in criminology and criminal justice will gather at the University of Abuja on June 26–27, 2025, to examine the reformation of the country’s correctional system.

The conference, themed “Correctional service reformation in Nigeria: Promoting justice, rehabilitation, and social reintegration”, aims to present evidence from research conducted by members of the Nigerian Society for Criminology (NSC) to promote justice, inmate rehabilitation, and social reintegration of discharged inmates.

In a press release issued on Monday, June 23, 2025, NSC President Professor Oludayo Tade announced that the conference will feature presentations from over 100 researchers and postgraduate students in criminology and security studies.

According to Tade, the conference objectives include assessing the current state of Nigeria’s correctional system and the need for reforms; exploring strategies for effective reformation, rehabilitation, and reintegration of ex-inmates; interrogating the role of law, policy, and human rights in penal reform; analysing probation, parole, and restorative justice; evaluating the impact of the 2019 Nigerian Correctional Service Act; and addressing challenges facing correctional services with policy recommendations.

The keynote speaker, Controller-General of Corrections Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, will speak on “2019 Correctional Service Act: Challenges and prospects for effective implementation.” The lead paper presenter, Professor Christopher Uchechukwu Uguokwe from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, will address “Human Resources Management in Penal and Correctional Facilities.”

Tade emphasised the correctional service’s critical role in inmate reformation and highlighted the need for internal reforms. “We need to focus on welfare issues and life within the prison walls. Apart from overcrowding and welfare concerns for inmates and staff, we must develop mechanisms to check prison breaks, preferential treatment of inmates, intelligence compromise, and corruption within the system,” he said.

He stressed the urgency of addressing the high number of awaiting-trial inmates, noting that of the total inmate population of 81,234, 53,234 (66%) are awaiting trial, contributing significantly to overcrowding and systemic inefficiencies.