Nigerian juvenile offenders: a case-controlled study

A case-controlled study was carried out on all the 51 juvenile delinquents found in a point prevalence survey of a Nigerian Borstal Remand Centre. Mean age of the delinquents was 17-27 years. They were mostly from the low social class (70.6%) and the commonest reason for admission was for being beyond parental control (68.6%). Identified risk factors found for juvenile delinquency were death of biological mother, parental marital failure, growing up with relatives rather than parents, drug abuse and ordinal position in the family. Possible cultural explanations for some of these observations were proffered. The need to improve on the living conditions of these juveniles and their assessment procedure were highlighted. Finally, it is imperative that the obsolete Nigerian Children and Young Person's Law be updated.