GOVERNMENT CONSTRUCTS CHITEDZE MAXIMUM PRISON TO EASE CONGESTION

In a bit to ease congestion in prisons Government says it will construct Maximum Prison at Chitedze in Lilongwe. The prison will among address the problems currently being experienced in most of the country’s prisons.

Speaking at a meeting ahead of the 4th Biannual meeting of the African Correctional Services Association (ACSA), Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security Bestone Chisamile observed that congestion which is common in the country’s reformatory centres has compromised sanitation among inmates.

In its quest to improve the welfare of inmates, government believes the construction of a maximum prison at Chitedze in Lilongwe will address the problem of congestion.

“Government overtime has been making a number of initiatives in terms of providing for additional prison cells and we are also in the process of constructing Chitedze Maximum Prison that will eventually reduce that congestion that we are currently experiencing” Chisamale disclosed.

Chisamile also cited the introduction of closed circuit television (CCTV) in some of the facilities as one way of monitoring activities in prisons.
Commenting on the ACSA meeting which is currently underway in Lilongwe, Chief Commissioner of Prisons Kennedy Nkhoma observed that security is a complicated issue hence the need for African states to share best practices to boost security in the region.

Nkhoma called on the need for concerted efforts in managing prisoners so that when they serve their sentences they can go back to society and contribute to socio economic development. Kennedy Nkhoma explained that the visibility of security personnel helps in tracking down crime and spoke on some of the programmes the Prisons Service has embarked on to reform inmates.