Administrative inefficiencies are eroding the essence of justice and human dignity in Nigeria’s correctional system. Today, the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) grapples with a growing crisis – overcrowded facilities, delayed trials, questionable budgetary priorities, and an increasingly dysfunctional justice system. These challenges not only violate human rights but also strain the nation’s limited resources, undermining the goals of rehabilitation and public safety.

As of April 2025, Nigeria’s 240 correctional centres are holding a staggering 82,847 inmates, nearly doubling their intended capacity of 50,083. The most alarming figure is not just the number of detainees but the breakdown. Over 56,000 of them, about 68 per cent, are awaiting trial, according to the Nigerian Correctional Service. This means that fewer than 27,000 inmates are actually convicted individuals. The bulk are citizens who remain incarcerated not because they have been found guilty but because they are caught in the web of a slow and underfunded justice system.

This problem is not new, but it has worsened. In December 2023, during a budget presentation before the Nigerian Senate, Haliru Nababa, the comptroller-general of the NCoS, shocked the lawmakers and the public by saying, “The service spends more per day feeding each of its 900 security dogs than it does on each human inmate.” At N800 daily, dogs receive slightly more attention than inmates who survive on just N750 per day, which is N250 per meal.

This revelation underlines how deeply skewed our budgetary priorities have become and how administrative choices can devalue human lives. Feeding a human being on N750 a day in today’s Nigeria, where inflation reached 33.95 per cent in May 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), is both unrealistic and inhumane. Prices of essential food items have soared, making it unlikely that N250 can provide a balanced, safe meal, let alone three times daily. Senators showed concern, questioning how such a meagre allocation could feed inmates without violating basic nutritional and humanitarian standards.

Beyond the cost issue, the larger question is why over 56,000 people, many of whom could be acquitted or bailed, are languishing in prison without trial. The key reason is logistics – officials of the NCoS lack adequate vehicles, fuel, and operational capacity to take inmates to and from court. As a result, trial dates come and go, and justice remains suspended indefinitely.

 “There must also be a renewed focus on alternative sentencing options for non-violent offenders, including community service, fines, and probation.”

We believe there is a path forward, such as the adoption of virtual court hearings. The use of technology to expedite justice has already shown results in other jurisdictions. With a relatively modest investment in digital infrastructure, inmates can be tried remotely, saving the correctional service the costs and delays associated with physical movements. It is not just about cost-efficiency but also about dignity, speed, and access to justice.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government of Nigeria, in January 2025, increased it to N1,125 from the previous N750 as daily feeding money for inmates.

Considering the cost-benefit analysis, feeding 82,847 inmates at N1,125 per day costs Nigeria N93,202,875 million daily and roughly over N34 billion yearly. Using the old rate, add the ₦800 daily allocation to each of the 900 dogs – a further ₦262.8 million yearly – and you are looking at nearly ₦35 billion each year spent mostly on people awaiting justice. This is a clear inefficiency, especially when many of these individuals may not deserve to be incarcerated in the first place.

Now compare this to the potential cost of digitising courtrooms and correctional centres with virtual trial facilities. The investment, while initially significant, is a one-off expenditure – vastly more economical than feeding and housing tens of thousands of people year in, year out. Virtual trials will also ease congestion, improve health and sanitation in prisons, and allow judicial officials to handle more cases efficiently.

Moreover, there is a profound human cost. Overcrowded prisons lead to deteriorating health, rising inmate deaths, and broken spirits. Nigeria has ratified several international treaties on the humane treatment of detainees yet continues to fall short of meeting those obligations. By neglecting to reform the justice delivery process, we risk breeding resentment, criminality, and distrust in the system. The social and moral costs are incalculable.

This moment calls for decisive action from all the arms of the government. Justice reform must no longer be delayed. Virtual court infrastructure should be treated as a national emergency, and budgetary allocations to the NCoS must reflect a balance between security and humanity. At the same time, prosecutorial agencies, the Legal Aid Council, and state judiciaries must collaborate to expedite trials and reduce the backlog of pending cases.

There must also be a renewed focus on alternative sentencing options for non-violent offenders, including community service, fines, and probation. Not every offender belongs behind bars. Nigeria’s correctional philosophy must shift from punitive incarceration to reformative justice.

It is time to align our practices with our principles. If we truly believe in justice, then the lives of 56,000 innocent till proven guilty citizens should not be spent wasting away in overpopulated prisons. Justice delayed is not just justice denied; it is also dehumanised, delegitimised, and dangerously expensive.

The cost of liberty, when measured in wasted lives and public funds, is too high. Reform must start now.