Africa-Press – Nigeria. Nigeria and Ethiopia recently signed an agreement in Addis Ababa for the transfer of sentenced individuals, allowing citizens of both countries serving prison sentences in the other country to return home to complete their sentences. A press release from a local source stated that the agreement was signed by the Nigerian Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, and the Ethiopian Minister of Justice, Hana Araya Selassie. The statement clarified that both countries agreed to immediately begin implementing the bilateral agreement in accordance with their national laws and international obligations.
According to the statement, more than 100 Nigerian citizens, including four women, are expected to benefit from the agreement while serving sentences in Ethiopian prisons. The statement also noted that four Nigerian prisoners died during the negotiations and judicial verification processes leading up to the signing of the agreement.
The signing ceremony was overseen by the Nigerian Foreign Minister, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and her Ethiopian counterpart, Gideon Timotheos. Odumegwu-Ojukwu described the agreement as a “significant diplomatic achievement based on humanity, justice, and international cooperation,” stating that the new legal framework allows for the transfer of sentenced individuals from both countries to their home countries to complete their sentences, provided they meet the agreed conditions and applicable laws. She added, “We cannot afford to lose more precious lives. We are determined to bring back those who are still alive.”
Odumegwu-Ojukwu is scheduled to visit the Kaliti and Aba Samuel prisons in Ethiopia as part of efforts to facilitate the implementation of the agreement.
Most Nigerians detained in Ethiopia serve their sentences at Kaliti Prison in Addis Ababa, where human rights groups have reported since 2019 that detainees face overcrowding, starvation, lack of medical care, and physical punishment, according to a local news outlet.
Advocacy groups for detainee rights claim that a large number of Nigerians held at Kaliti are travelers passing through Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, one of Africa’s busiest airports, who were arrested on drug-related charges, alleging that some were carrying narcotics unknowingly.
In Nigeria, an independent investigation lasting 18 months—whose results were presented by the Ministry of Interior during a regional seminar of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Abuja in late March 2026—revealed that Nigerian detention facilities have “turned into a kind of human storage,” noting cases where overcrowding exceeded 500% of capacity, and that over 70% of inmates are held awaiting trial. It added that inmates often have to pay for a bed, family visits, or transportation to court, according to another local news outlet.
