NCoS partners HBB to boost prison farm reform and food production
Nigeria's Correctional Service (NCoS) and Hope Behind Bars (HBB) launched a partnership Wednesday to optimize prison farm centers for inmate rehabilitation and national food production. Controller General Sylvester Nwakuche announced the initiative aims to transform correctional facilities into systems focused on rehabilitation, reformation, and reintegration, with agricultural projects serving as practical platforms for skills acquisition and professional training. The pilot Farming Justice Project, implemented in Dukpa, Kuje, Kirikiri, and Oko centers, addresses food insecurity highlighted by NCoS's N27.28 billion 2025 feeding expenditure and N10.75 billion liabilities. Ex-inmates like Samuel Saul and Mohammed Suleiman, who received fish farming training, now operate successful businesses, demonstrating the program's impact. The partnership emphasizes public-private collaboration to enhance productivity, with potential annual savings of N53.2 million through land utilization improvements. NCoS proposes extending inmate participation eligibility to those with one year remaining on sentences. Will you support PPP investments in prison agriculture or advocate for policy reforms to expand these initiatives?