Rehabilitation and Welfare of Inmates in Nigeria Prisons: A Case of Selected Prisons in Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed the extent of implementation and administration of rehabilitation programme and also examined the welfare of inmates in selected Prisons in Southwestern Nigeria in the study area with a view to enhancing policies/programmes of prison service in the country. This study employed both primary and secondary data. Primary data were obtained through the administration of questionnaire on inmates to elicit information on their well-being. The simple random sampling method was used to select 204 respondents which constituted 10% of the total population (2042) of prison inmates in the purposively selected prisons (Ibadan, Akure and Abeokuta) in Southwestern Nigeria. Focus group discussion was held with 8 ex-convicts and 5 inmates’ relatives. The secondary sources of information that were employed included relevant official publications and records from Nigerian Prisons Service, journal articles, periodicals and internet sources. Data collected were tabulated and analyzed using percentage and frequency as descriptive; and Chi-square as inferential statistics. The study finds that administration of rehabilitation programme of Nigerian Prisons Service was not effectively implemented. This was attested to by the obtained result ( χ 2= 1.101). The consequence of this is that the inmates will not be able to provide for their daily needs on release and will find it difficult to integrate into the community. The temptation to take to crime is higher than before. Equally, the study found that the inmate’s welfare in the selected prisons was not well taken care of, as this was confirmed by the obtained result ( χ 2 = 1.500). The study concluded that administration of inmates’ rehabilitation and welfare programmes by Nigerian Prisons Service in Southwestern Nigeria was ineffective and needed to be improved in order to achieve the goal for which it was established.