The Federal Government has expressed concern over the detention of approximately 26,000 children in correctional facilities, calling it a violation of laws mandating their placement in borstal institutions.
In a statement released on Wednesday in Abuja, the Director of Press and Public Relations at the Ministry of Interior, Mr. Ozoya Imohimi, disclosed that Interior Minister Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo raised the issue during a high-level inter-agency meeting held on Tuesday.
Dr. Tunji-Ojo acknowledged the shortage of appropriate facilities and called for urgent measures to address legal and institutional shortcomings.
He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to overhauling the correctional system, particularly concerning the high number of children in custody, as part of broader justice sector reforms.
The minister emphasized the need for a new approach to governance, stating, “Reality is not about dwelling on the past but focusing on the present to shape the future. The time for change is now, and we are committed to doing things differently to achieve real results.”
As part of the planned reforms, Dr. Tunji-Ojo announced the creation of a Nigerian Paramilitary Academy to train officers in correctional principles and empathy.
He also stressed the importance of alternative sentencing for non-violent offenders to reduce unnecessary detentions.
Highlighting the need for collaboration between government agencies, he urged state governments to actively participate in addressing juvenile detention, noting that correctional services require a nationwide approach.
Reaffirming the administration’s commitment to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the minister insisted that inaction was not an option. “Correctional services are about rehabilitation, not punishment. We must build a system future generations will be proud of,” he stated.
Dr. Tunji-Ojo further cited the findings of the 2024 report on children and young adults deprived of liberty, which revealed that over the past five years, an estimated 26,000 children have been held in correctional centres annually—accounting for more than 30% of the total inmate population.
Condemning this situation as a violation of child protection laws, he vowed to hold responsible institutions accountable.
“The law is clear—children do not belong in adult correctional centres. Any agency failing to comply will face consequences,” he warned.
He called for political will and resource mobilization to drive systemic reforms and end arbitrary child detention. “It takes a whole society to raise a child. We must not fail our children. By 2027, we will talk about concrete achievements, not just promises,” he affirmed.
Supporting his stance, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, described the statistics as alarming.
She stressed that between 2018 and 2022, an annual average of 26,000 children and young adults were detained, highlighting the urgent need for intervention to protect these vulnerable individuals.