Ghana Boosts Prison Feeding Allowance to GH¢5 Per Inmate After 15 Years of Stagnation
In a long-overdue reform, the Ghanaian government has approved raising the daily feeding fee for prisoners from GH¢1.80 to GH¢5, the first increase since 2010, as announced by Interior Minister Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak during his appearance before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on September 30, 2025.
The adjustment, secured through presidential approval, will be integrated into the 2026 Budget, with an initial GH¢10 million allocation slated for the final quarter of 2025 to ease immediate strains.
PAC members lambasted the outdated GH¢1.80 rate—unchanged for over a decade—as woefully insufficient for three daily meals, especially amid soaring food inflation.
Committee member Sebastian Fred Deh contrasted it with the GH¢2.50 per child in the school feeding program, arguing it breaches the UN’s Mandela Rules mandating nutritious inmate diets. He pressed for swift fund disbursement to avert health crises and unrest.
Ghana Prisons Service Director-General Patience Baffoe-Bonnie echoed these concerns, revealing that subpar feeding has jeopardized inmate health and sparked frequent disturbances, endangering both prisoners and officers.
To cope, the Service has relied on self-sustaining initiatives like prison gardens, fish ponds, and poultry farms, plus sporadic aid from churches. She warned that food scarcity remains the top trigger for prison riots and vowed to advocate for even higher rates in 2026 to match adult nutritional needs.
The hike addresses persistent calls from rights groups and parliamentary committees, including a recent August 2025 Human Rights Committee appeal to President John Dramani Mahama for at least GH¢5 to uphold inmate dignity.
With Ghana’s prison population exceeding 14,000—many in overcrowded facilities—this reform is a step toward humane corrections, though experts urge complementary investments in infrastructure and rehabilitation
