486 inmates convicted to non-custodial services in 11 months – Report

Findings has revealed that in 2023, a total of 486 inmates received convictions for non-custodial services.

According to The PUNCH, this was obtained in the data published on the Nigerian Correctional Services’ official website under the title, ‘Summary of Inmate Population Convicted to Non-Custodial Measures as of November 27, 2023.’

The breakdown of these convictions indicated that 440 males and 46 females were among those convicted.

A closer examination of the statistics revealed that 319 inmates were sentenced to community service, none to parole, 36 to probation, 85 to restorative justice, and 46 inmates to various other non-custodial measures.

The introduction of the non-custodial component into the operations of the Nigeria Correctional Services, implemented through the NCoS Act, 2019, stands as a remarkable milestone in the institution’s approach to rehabilitation and justice.

Speaking on non-custodial centres, the NCoS Spokesperson, FCT Command, Adamu Duza said, “The non-custodial measures is a major game changer in the business of corrections, as it not only an alternative to imprisonment but a means of decongesting our custodial centres, saving cost for the government, providing free service to the community and also a revenue generator.

“However, the challenge is public cooperation with the non-custodial service. The public stigmatizes the offenders, not minding the reformatory processes they have passed through.”

Duza urged government agencies, community leaders, religious leaders, and other stakeholders to rally behind the implementation of the NCoS’s non-custodial service measure.