Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to modernising correctional services across Africa through technology, institutional reforms, data-driven decision-making and stronger regional collaboration.
Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the commitment while declaring open the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Conference on Prisoner Classification and the Use of Technology in Prison Settings in Africa on Wednesday.
Addressing correctional leaders and stakeholders from across the continent, the Minister stressed that Africa’s correctional systems must evolve to meet the demands of the 21st century, noting that technology has become indispensable in building secure, efficient and humane prison systems.
“The approach to correctional service management in the 19th century cannot be the same as the 21st century. Technology is no longer optional; it is essential,” he said.
Tunji-Ojo commended the UNODC, the African Correctional Services Association (ACSA), the United States Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), and other development partners for organising the conference, describing it as a vital platform for promoting common correctional standards across Africa.
He urged correctional administrators to prioritise understanding the root causes of challenges before prescribing solutions.
“We spend too much time prescribing solutions to problems we do not fully understand. If we invest enough time in understanding the problem, implementing the solution becomes much easier,” he stated.
The Minister also challenged participants to focus on three key questions when pursuing reforms: identifying the problem, determining the appropriate solution, and setting a realistic implementation timeline.
Highlighting Nigeria’s progress in correctional reforms, Tunji-Ojo disclosed that the country has recorded no successful prison attacks or jailbreaks since the current administration assumed office. He attributed the achievement to digital transformation, improved inmate data management and stronger collaboration among security agencies.
According to him, the digitisation of inmate records, including biometric data and photographs, has significantly enhanced the country’s capacity to monitor offenders and respond swiftly to security threats.
“This is the power of technology. However, technology can never replace human beings; it only enhances efficiency. Investment in technology must go hand in hand with investment in human capacity,” he said.
The Minister further called on African governments to integrate correctional services into their broader national security strategies and strengthen intelligence and information sharing among law enforcement agencies across the continent.
He said improved collaboration would ensure that criminals are unable to exploit weak cross-border systems to evade justice.
“I look forward to an Africa where a criminal fleeing one country cannot simply find refuge in another because our systems are connected and our institutions collaborate,” he added.
Beyond security, Tunji-Ojo advocated a renewed focus on rehabilitation, describing correctional centres as institutions that should restore lives rather than merely confine offenders.
“A correctional centre should be a place of transformation, rehabilitation, restoration and hope—not simply a place of confinement,” he emphasised.
He also urged African countries to strengthen legal frameworks governing borstal institutions and juvenile justice, insisting that young offenders should never be detained alongside hardened criminals.
The Minister revealed that Nigeria has expanded access to education, vocational training and skills acquisition programmes for inmates, with thousands currently enrolled in formal education, postgraduate studies and various rehabilitation initiatives.
He noted that these interventions have contributed significantly to reducing recidivism while transforming correctional facilities into centres of productivity and personal development.
“There is nothing wrong in Africa that cannot be put right by Africans. Let us become agents of transformation and work together to build correctional systems that strengthen justice, improve security and restore hope,” he said.
Declaring the conference open, Tunji-Ojo called on African nations to fully embrace technology as a critical tool for improving correctional administration, enhancing internal security and advancing justice across the continent.
