53,254 inmates awaiting trial in custodial centres – Report

A total of 53,254 inmates are currently awaiting trial in different custodial centres across Nigeria, data sourced from the Nigerian Correctional Service have revealed.

The figures, our correspondent gathered on Friday, were last updated on February 24, 2025.

According to the data, the total inmate population stands at 80,100, with 26,846 inmates already convicted.

The high number of awaiting-trial inmates highlights ongoing concerns about delays in Nigeria’s judicial system, which has contributed to overcrowding in correctional facilities.

In January 2025, the Acting Controller-General of the NCoS, Sylvester Nwakuche, pledged to address the backlog of awaiting trial cases and improve custodial facility management across the country.

At a media parley in January this year, the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the ministry would release a comprehensive reform plan for the correctional service by October 1.

Tunji-Ojo emphasised that merely auditing inmates and correctional centres was insufficient without strategic reforms to overhaul the system.

“There is no point just auditing inmates or correctional centres without strategic reforms in the Nigerian Correctional Service. The audit should be a product of the reforms in the correctional service.

“We have done the first phase. We have submitted the report and taken action on that. The second phase is currently ongoing.

“By October 1, 2025, the full report on not just about the inmate’s audit but also step by step on what to do to improve the correctional service that will be transformational, correctional,” the minister stated.