The Federal Republic of Nigeria and the United Kingdom have signed an agreement providing for the transfer of prisoners between the two countries.
The agreement would allow Nigerians who commit crimes in the United Kingdom, and Britons who commit crimes in Nigeria, to serve their sentences in their own country, where they can be properly prepared for release into the community in which they would live following their release.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Abuja, British Justice Minister, Jeremy Wright, said that removing foreign national offenders is a key priority for the British Government, and the Prisoner Transfer Agreement signed with the Nigerian Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, plays a significant role in supporting the mutual agreement.
Nigeria and the United Kingdom have in place, Prisoner Transfer Arrangements with a number of other countries.
A special joint committee of Nigerian and British officials will oversee the implementation of the agreement, as the first set of prisoners will be transferred under the agreement before the end of 2014.
