FG to Increase Prisoners’ Daily Feeding Allowance to N3,000

The Federal Government is set to increase the feeding allowance of inmates in correctional centres in Nigeria from N750 to N3,000 per day.

This, reports say, follows the findings of an independent panel that probed allegations of corruption and human rights abuses in the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS).

It was understood that the recommendation was contained in the panel’s final report submitted to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo on June 3, 2026.

The report is the result of months of investigation into how prisons across the country are run.

The committee was set up in September 2024 to investigate allegations of misbehaviour in the correctional system and to recommend how to improve its operations.

During its work, the panel visited 86 custodial centres in 23 states and the Federal Capital Territory, held public hearings and undertook a study visit to Türkiye.

The panel’s investigation revealed that there were poor welfare conditions in a number of correctional facilities and one of the major concerns highlighted was the feeding of inmates.

The report revealed allegations of diversion of funds, inflated contracts and poor management of resources meant for feeding, health care and rehabilitation programmes.

Malnutrition among inmates has been attributed to inadequate feeding budgets and alleged irregularities in food supply arrangements in many custodial centres, the report said.

The food portions, in some of the facilities visited by investigators, were said to be grossly inadequate.

Investigators said food supplies at the Owerri Correctional Centre in Imo State were severely limited, with small quantities of fish reportedly being shared among several inmates.

The panel was told of deaths in the facility associated with poor feeding conditions and malnutrition in Akwa Ibom State.

Alleged irregularities in awarding feeding contracts were also found by the committee.

The report found many contracts were awarded to companies located far away from the correctional centres they were meant to service.

The conditions were said to have created an opportunity for subcontracting deals, with some contractors passing on responsibilities to officials in charge of the facilities.

Some serving and retired correctional officers, politicians and other influential people have also been linked to the feeding contract process, the panel alleged.

They found that some contractors had offloaded the responsibility of providing meals at rates well below those approved by the government, making it difficult to feed inmates adequately.

The report raised concerns that, in addition to the feeding problems, some of the practices of the system could be contributing to prison overcrowding.

The panel said some people benefiting from supply contracts might have little incentive to support alternatives to imprisonment or to expand agricultural programmes that could reduce dependence on external food suppliers.

The committee recommended an immediate increase in the feeding allowance to ₦3,000 per inmate per day to address the issues discovered during the probe.

It added that the adjustment would better reflect current economic realities and improve the quality of meals served in correctional centres.

The panel also recommended the government modernise the correctional farm centres, boost food production in custodial facilities and reduce reliance on outside vendors.

The hope that implementation of its recommendations would improve on inmate welfare, enhance accountability in contract administration and facilitate continued reforms in Nigeria’s correctional system.