Government to Increase Daily Feeding Rate for Prison Inmates from GH¢1.80 to GH¢5

The government has approved an increase in the daily feeding fee for prisoners from GH¢1.80 to GH¢5, fifteen years after the rate was last reviewed.

The Minister for the Interior, Mr. Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, has announced that the government will increase the daily feeding rate for prison inmates. Speaking before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, the minister revealed that the revised rate will be included in the 2026 Budget, following presidential approval. An initial sum of GH¢10 million is expected to be released to cover feeding costs for the final quarter of this year.

Committee members criticized the current GH¢1.80 per inmate per day—unchanged since 2010—as grossly insufficient to provide three meals daily.

Mrs. Patience Baffoe-Bonnie, Director-General of the Ghana Prisons Service, told the committee that inadequate feeding compromises the health and general wellbeing of inmates. She highlighted that poor nutrition remains a persistent challenge across prison facilities.

Mr. Sebastian Fred Deh, a committee member, noted that the GH¢1.80 rate falls below the GH¢2.50 allocated per child under the national school feeding programme. He stressed that this disparity contravenes the Mandela Rules, which require prisoners to be provided with adequate food. He urged the government to release the approved funds promptly to ease pressure on the prison system.

Mrs. Baffoe-Bonnie explained that the Prisons Service has been forced to supplement food rations through in-house agricultural initiatives such as gardens, fish ponds, and poultry, along with occasional support from churches and donors. However, she warned that food shortages remain the leading cause of unrest within prisons and emphasized the need for improved rations to maintain peace and protect correctional staff.

She confirmed that the newly approved GH¢5 daily rate represents progress but indicated that the Service would continue to advocate for a further increase in the 2026 fiscal year to match the actual cost of feeding inmates adequately.