Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison in Lagos has been ranked as the worst correctional facility in Africa by international rights organisations and monitoring bodies.
Nigeria accounts for five of the top ten most deplorable prisons on the continent, with Agbor Prison in Delta State listed in fourth place, Port Harcourt Prison in sixth, Owerri Prison in eighth and Kuje Prison in Abuja ranked tenth.
Monitors attribute the rankings to severe overcrowding, insufficient sanitation, widespread violence and inhumane living conditions that violate global prison standards.
Kirikiri holds more than 2,500 inmates despite being originally built for only 800, creating a crisis of overstretched facilities and disease-prone cells.
Nigeria’s entire prison system is designed to hold just over 53,000 inmates, yet more than 80,000 people are currently detained, many of whom are awaiting trial.
Rights groups say Port Harcourt Prison houses about 4,000 detainees, nearly four times its intended capacity, worsening hunger, disease and violence behind bars.
The International Committee of the Red Cross estimates that many African prisons operate at 170 per cent occupancy, with most structures dating back to the colonial era and unfit for modern use.
Other prisons on the continental list include Makala Central Prison in DR Congo, Chikurubi in Zimbabwe, Pollsmoor in South Africa, Black Beach in Equatorial Guinea and Kikuyu Maximum Prison in Kenya.
Previous investigations into Nigerian prisons revealed horrifying conditions, including inmates trading sex for as little as ₦5,000 and using drugs to cope with abuse and starvation.
Campaigners say Bola Tinubu’s administration has failed to deliver any meaningful reforms, despite repeated warnings about the collapsing prison system and its human rights implications.
Legal experts and activists insist that overcrowding will persist unless the government tackles slow judicial processes, pre-trial detention, and underfunding of correctional services.
Story credit: Foundation for Investigative Journalism
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