Determinants Of Drug Usage Among Females As Perceived By Secondary School Teachers
[A CASE STUDY OF ILORIN SOUTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA]

Women make-up a small but growing number of prison inmates. On a prison census taken by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on 30 June 2003, 1,198 females were under sentence in Australian prisons, up to 67% from 718 on June 1994 (ABS 2004b). As a result of the higher growth rate of females’ prisoners, they made up a growing proportion of total prisoners, from 5% in 1994 to 7% in 2003.
    Since many prisoners are admitted following conviction for more than one offence, offenders are categorized in the prison census according to the most serious determined as the offences that resulted in the longest sentence. Although the numbers of men, a higher proportion of incarcerated women are serving prison sentences for drug offences as the most serious offence 14% compared to 10% of men. Higher proportions of women are also incarcerated for fraud and thefts were as men are more likely to be in prison for violent offences. The number of women counted in the prison censuses who were incarcerated for drug offences increased by 40% between 1994 and 2003, from 118 to 165 while the number of males declined 4, form 1599 to 1666. The rise occurred despite the drug in females arrested for the more serious offences of trafficking, manufacturing or importing (provider offences) that trend to the results in a prison sentence.

This reflects the differences give for drug trafficking and manufacturing as compared to possession of illegal drugs where possession more often results in a non-custodial sentence.