Challenges Confronting Rehabilitation Programmes in Keffi Correctional Centre of Nasarawa State, Nigeria

The problems of rehabilitation of inmates is a major social problem in almost all the security custodial services in Nigeria. The study assesses the challenges confronting rehabilitation programmes in Keffi correctional centre of Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The study anchored on the social bond/the control theory as a theoretical orientation. The study utilizes the survey research design. The study population was restricted to the convicts. This is the segment of the inmate population that have access to the rehabilitation programmes in the correctional centre. Since the population was restricted to convicted inmates, the study therefore take census of all convicted inmates in Keffi correctional centre. The study combined the use of primary and secondary data. Quantitative data were analyzed using univariate analysis on the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS v26). Similarly, the study employed thematic analysis to analyse the qualitative data. Findings show that the various rehabilitation programmes in the correctional centres are inhibited with some challenges. It was revealed that that among the challenges inhibiting rehabilitation programmes in the correctional facility include the inhumane condition of the environment, overcrowding, poor medical facility. Poor training of staff, lack of required facilities needed for training and poorly equipped school. This is reported by larger percentage of the inmates outlined the aforementioned challenges. Based on these premises, the study recommends that there is need to ensure that the available rehabilitation programmes are properly executed to enhance efficiency. More so, training and retraining of correctional centre officials should become a major priority to the government and skills acquisition workshops in correctional centre should be revitalized. Also, the Nigerian correctional centre should be sufficiently funded to be able to meet up with its mandates.