74% of children in the Borsal houses in Nigeria waiting for a process – relationship

A disturbing new relationship has revealed that almost three quarters of children and young adults held in the Borsal institutions of Nigeria are languishing in detention without trial, raising new concerns about the country’s juvenile judicial system.

According to the report, entitled “An assessment of the situation of children and young adults deprived of freedom in Nigeria”, 74 % of those in the Borsali has not been tried or is still awaiting the outcome of the legal processes.

Only 26 percent was condemned, an expert in figures are described as an alarming system for a system intended to rehabilitate, not punish.

The report was developed by the Federal Ministry of the Interior in collaboration with UNICEF Nigeria and offers a complete analysis of the state of minors held between 2018 and 2022. It was officially published in 2025.

A total of 133,906 children and young adults were arrested throughout Nigeria in the period in question, including 3,967 in the Borstal institutions, 7,375 in postponement houses and incredible 122,564 in custodian centers for adults, without people not inadequate for minors.

The data showed a worrying imbalance, with 95 % of prisoners who are males. About 2,120 of them were less than 16 years old, while over 120,000 returned to the 16 to 20 years.

The theft and theft represented almost half (47%) of the crimes committed by minors in 17 states, followed by rape (2.8%), cultural, murder and various detention related to children’s protection such as “wandering” or being considered “beyond control of parents”.

The report highlighted a critical lack of legal representation, noting that an average of 68.2 percent of the minors prisoners had no access to legal assistance. This, in turn, is related to a complaint rate of 64.8 percent on the delayed delivery of justice.

In addition to the legal setbacks, the evaluation revealed difficult conditions of detention, including overcrowding, poor hygiene, inadequate health and education and an exhibition widespread to abuse and torture.

According to reports, many of the children and young adults have been victims of poverty, abandonment or abandoned by their families, further complicating their possibility of guaranteeing bail or rehabilitation.

The report provided for urgent systemic reforms and a coordinated response by the interested parties of the whole government, civil society and the legal community to protect the rights of children in custody.

He urged the Nigerian government to establish a more compassionate juvenile judicial system in which all minors are treated with dignity, have provided equal access to justice and supported through adequate rehabilitation programs.

The interested parties affirm that without immediate intervention, Nigeria risks raising a new generation of traumatized young people, criminalized unjustly and permanently scarred by a broken system destined to protect them.

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