Kenya Prisons Service, Brig (Rtd) John Warioba, has confirmed that the government is redesigning the prisons to ensure they have ultra-modern facilities.
Speaking during the closing of a four-day workshop in Nairobi, Warioba stated that the prisons are embracing digitalization and training.
He noted that the government wants to ensure that prisons are up to international standards and moving away from the current facilities which have existed since the pre-colonial period.
"We are doing a lot of improvement to make them more comfortable for the prisoners so that they can go through the rehabilitation seamlessly," Warioba stated.
Kenya is among the 12 English-speaking African countries that drafted the infrastructure maintenance guidebook for prisons and correctional facilities.
The guidebook will help correctional facilities upgrade their infrastructures including digitalizing the prison services.
Warioba stated that the government has committed to ensuring prisons are safe by increasing budgetary allocations to the service.
Speakers at the workshop emphasized the need to have better reformation programs in prisons with the view that when prisoners are discharged, they will be appropriately equipped with employable skills.
The efforts to change the prison system and infrastructure were lauded by the speakers who promoted the holistic approach to re-design prison infrastructures to bring peace in the society.
The meeting reflected on previous editions held in Addis Ababa in November 2018 and Kigali in 2020, with a focus on the revision of the draft “Prison Maintenance Guide” and its operationalization.
“Prisons worldwide serve as homes to thousands of people in conflict with the law. It is paramount to note that children accompanying their mothers to prison also spend their early years of life in these institutions.
"Many prisoners spend a long time in pre-trial detention before the conclusion of their cases,” the Commissioner General of KPS stated.
He further noted that prisoners’ vulnerability makes them dependent on policymakers who have a responsibility to guarantee that they are protected and well catered for.
