The Federal Government has defended its agreement with Ethiopia on the transfer of sentenced persons, saying the deal is aimed at enabling Nigerian inmates to serve their remaining jail terms in Nigeria under more humane conditions.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said the arrangement aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s citizen diplomacy policy focused on protecting Nigerians abroad.
She said the policy placed the welfare of Nigerian citizens at the centre of the country’s foreign engagements.
The minister also dismissed reports circulating on social media claiming that 136 Nigerians were imprisoned in Ethiopia, describing the figures as false.
According to her, only 98 Nigerian inmates in Ethiopian maximum-security prisons are covered by the agreement.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu said negotiations for the deal took several years due to challenges in verifying the actual number of Nigerian prisoners in Ethiopia.
She said the inmates were held in facilities including Kaliti and Aba Samuel prisons.
The minister noted that many of the prisoners had repeatedly appealed for repatriation due to harsh conditions.
She listed challenges including poor healthcare, inadequate feeding, limited legal access, language barriers, and lack of family visitation.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu disclosed that four Nigerian inmates died while discussions on the agreement were ongoing.
She said this underscored the urgency of the intervention by both countries.
The minister described many of the inmates as young Nigerians who made regrettable choices and were victims of criminal networks.
She insisted they still deserve humane treatment despite their offences.
Addressing concerns over possible release upon return, she said the agreement prohibits pardon or amnesty without Ethiopia’s consent.
She also rejected claims that the inmates belong mainly to one ethnic group.
“A lot of them are from the South-East. There are also those from the South-West and South-South. Crime has no ethnicity,” she said.
The minister said the Federal Government remained committed to similar interventions for Nigerians facing legal challenges abroad.
She added that citizen protection remains a key pillar of Nigeria’s foreign policy under the Renewed Hope administration.
