AMILOADED MEDIA HUB NEWS UPDATE
The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) Zone G, has started the production of bread in Benin, the capital of Edo for both its inmates and members of the public.
Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Minister of Interior while speaking at the official handover of the zonal bakery project to First Global Hakitekt Bread Bakery Limited for effective management, described the project as a laudable one.
The Interior Minister who was represented by the director of special duties in the ministry, Mrs Comfort Kabirwa, commended the buy-in of the project by the different controllers in the zone comprising Edo, Delta, Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi.
While stressing the importance of Public Private Partnerships (PPP), the Minister noted that a recent decongestion of correctional centers was not government funded but through corporate social responsibility.
We have to think out of the box to achieve our mandate. The bakery is a laudable project because it will help build the skills of the inmates and give them a source of livelihood and make them employable after leaving the correctional center,” he said.
He added that charging the name from prisons to correctional was intentional not just for rebranding but to change the way prisoners were treated.
Haliru Nababa, Controller General of Corrections had earlier stated that the Bakery Initiative was a collaborative effort between the NCoS and the First Global Hakitekt Bread Bakery Limited under a PPP arrangement.
Nababa said the project was also supported by the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Finance, and the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission
“It is a pilot initiative aimed at enhancing the performances of federal government projects. The First Global Hakitekt Bread Bakery Limited is expected to bring in expertise to allow for a win-win situation for both parties. “
Represented by the NCoS Zonal Controller, Zone G, Assistant Controller General, Friday Ovie, he said that initiative was in line with the mandate of the Service, which included inmates rehabilitation via skills acquisition.
Meanwhile, Managing Director, First Global Hakitekt Bread Bakery Limited, Mr Dare Eluyemi, said the project was not just to equip inmates with bakery skills but also to create jobs in the bakery value chain.
“The bakery project has the capacity to produce bread for more than 32,000 inmates on a daily basis.
“It will help to reduce government effort in meeting the food consumption of inmates in correctional centres and sold to thepublic for income generation.
On her part, Controller, NCoS, Edo, Philomena Emehinola, said the Bakery initiative was a plus to the state as it would put the state in the limelight.
“We will make the project sustainable to feed our inmates as well as build their skills in bakery.”
She added that the inmates who would undergo skill acquisition in the bakery project would be paid an incentive under the earning scheme but would be given the money at the end of their jail term.
Reports also revealed that the pilot project will run for two years, after which it will be replicated in other zones of the NCOS.
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