Government approves GHS5 daily feeding for inmates– Prisons DG
The Director-General of the Ghana Prisons Service, Mrs. Patience Baffoe-Bonnie (ESQ), has revealed that although the government has approved an increase in the daily feeding allowance for inmates to GHC5, the funds have not yet been released.
Until recently, prison authorities were managing just GHC1.80 per inmate per day, a figure Mrs. Baffoe-Bonnie described as “grossly inadequate.”
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee on Tuesday, September 30, she warned that poor nutrition remains a major trigger of unrest in the country’s prisons.
“Once the feeding is wrong, it has ripple effects on health and every other thing; we are working assiduously to ensure the rules change. We are hopeful the GHC5 a day will be increased in the course of 2026 to reflect the feeding regime for a disgruntled adult, an angry adult behind bars,” she said.
To supplement the limited food supply, she noted that prison facilities rely on their own gardens, a small fish pond, and donations from churches and other benevolent groups.
According to the Prisons Service boss, inadequate feeding often leads to inmate riots, putting the safety of prison officers at serious risk.
“We have to note on this platform that one of the things that is giving cause for inmates to riot is food. And so, we do everything within our means to ensure that as much as possible, we’re containing the inmates without the riots.”
“Because if there are any riots, the poor prison officer becomes the first point of attack before any intervention. I want to say that beyond the feeding, there are also challenges,” she said.
Beyond the issue of feeding, Mrs. Baffoe-Bonnie called for broader reforms to improve prison conditions, stating that the welfare of inmates is a matter of national security.
“If we want to have serious public safety in this country, we have to prioritise the needs of prisoners. Because they’re part of us, they will be with us, and we don’t know who will be our next guest,” she stated.
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