Socio-Economic Justice Through Prison Vocational Labour in Nigeria: Significance for Recidivism and Overcrowding

Abstract

The Nigerian criminal justice system faces the challenges of addressing punitive incarceration, crime prevention and prison decongestion. Unfortunately, Nigerian correctional centres often still struggle with overcrowding and ineffective rehabilitation programs due to limited resources, leading to high recidivism rates of 52.4%. This paper examines the impact of prison and vocational labour on the socioeconomic lives of incarcerated individuals, their families, and society. The paper utilizes secondary data to analyze compliance with the Correctional Service Act 2019 and the Mandela Rules regarding prison vocational labour. It also adopts the doctrinal legal research methodology to analyze relevant legal texts, principles and materials. The paper explores theories connecting poverty, recidivism, and crime. Given Nigeria's reliance on incarceration, examining vocational labour models in other jurisdictions is particularly relevant. Nigeria's legal framework for prison vocational labour is primarily contained in the Correctional Service Act 2019, but its implementation has been mostly sporadic. The paper concludes that providing inmates with meaningful work opportunities and job skills training can facilitate successful reintegration, reduce recidivism, and lower the inmate population. The paper recommends the domestic implementation of successful protocols in other jurisdictions, and proposes the establishment of a Correctional Labor and Vocational Oversight Bureau to oversee prisoners' employment and skills development in Nigeria, as practiced in some other countries.