Learn from Kenya’s prisons

Overcrowding. Malnutrition. Poor sanitation. Low access to healthcare. Challenges keep piling for inmates in Malawi’s prisons, but human rights defender VICTOR CHAGUNYUKA MHANGO says the country’s policymakers should look no  further than Kenya’s ongoing reforms for answers to the persistent woes.

From overcrowding and inadequate resources to lack of rehabilitation, prisons across Africa face many challenges.

In Malawi, prisons are not only overpopulated but also underfunded, leaving inmates in inhumane conditions that violate their basic rights.

Despite a sustained lobby for better budgets and conditions, much work remains to be done.

Kenya’s recent reforms offer a compelling example on how Malawi can transform its prison system into a productive and rehabilitative institution.

Kenya’s initiative to turn prisons into industries is a model worth exploring.

The east African country has 135 prisons which house over 63 000 inmates.

The Kenyan government is shifting the prison system from mere confinement to rehabilitating offenders, training them in various trades and making prisons self-sufficient.

Kenya is enhancing inmates’ skills and making prisons financially sustainable by focusing on agriculture, carpentry, construction and other industries.

Malawi, which has 23 district prisons, can learn from this approach.

Kenya’s prison reforms include introducing vocational and agricultural training to ensure that prisons are not just places of confinement but avenues for rehabilitation and personal development. Already, 8 500 inmates have learned various trades and Kenya is expanding its prison farming programmes to produce food for the correctional facilities and the country.

In Malawi, there are similar initiatives, albeit scanty. With the aid of partners, the Malawi Prison Service runs a skills project focusing on barbering, tailoring, carpentry and bricklaying.

However, these initiatives are financially constrained and they lack infrastructure.

Expanding such programmes to cover more trades and industries would offer inmates the skills to reintegrate into society, reducing recidivism.

Moreover, vocational training can help underfunded prisons become more self-sustaining, as inmates produce goods that boost the economy.

Kenya’s prison industries have already made significant contributions to the economy, producing furniture, baked goods and farm produce.

For example, Kamiti Maximum Prison has Kenya’s largest prison furniture industry and has been involved in multi-billion shilling projects such as renovating Kenya’s National Assembly chambers.

Prisons also produce food through potato farming in Nyandarua and rice milling in Mwea.

Malawi’s prisons have the potential to adopt a similar model.

The idea of converting prisons like Mikuyu and Mwanza into farms, where inmates can grow crops, raise livestock and produce food for the broader market, is promising.

The K100 million allocated for establishing megafarms in the country’s prisons during the 2022/23 Mid-Year Budget review is a step in the right direction. However, this funding must be utilised effectively to expand production and create self-sufficient facilities.

By training inmates in agriculture and other trades, the country could reduce its dependency on external resources and ensure prisons contribute to national food security.

Kenya’s prison reforms include improving inmates’ living conditions and welfare.

These include better housing, medical care and diet as well as environmental and climate change mitigation efforts such as planting trees.

These changes not only benefit the inmates but also reflect a rights-based approach, ensuring that inmates are treated with dignity and respect.

Centre for Human Rights Education Advice and Assistance (Chreaa) and the Southern Africa Litigation Centre (Salc) have long advocated improved prison conditions in Malawi.

The revised prison budget in the 2022/23 mid-year national budget review, which increased the prison food budget, is a positive step.

However, the current living conditions in many prisons remain dire, with overcrowding and low access to healthcare.

Malawi must prioritise improving these conditions to ensure that prisoners’ rights are respected and create a favourable environment for rehabilitation and productivity.

Kenya’s reforms are anchored in legal and policy changes aimed at improving prison governance. This includes reviewing the Prisons Act, the Borstal Institutions Act and the Community Service Orders Act.

In Malawi, passing of the long-awaited Prisons Bill could serve as the foundation for comprehensive reforms.

The proposed law would modernise the legal framework governing prisons for better oversight and management of emerging industries and rehabilitation programmes.

Chreaa urges the Malawi Government and all stakeholders to support reforms that prioritise prisoners’ rights, welfare and rehabilitation. n

*The author is the Chreaa executive director