The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Corrections/ Prisons Sub-Committee (C/PSC) met virtually on the 18th of June 2024 to review progress in the implementation of the Corrections/Prisons Strategic Plan, 2021-2025. The meeting was attended by 15 SADC Member States, namely Republics of Angola, Botswana, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe; Democratic Republic of Congo; Kingdoms of Eswatini and Lesotho; and the United Republic of Tanzania.
The meeting was officially opened by the Commissioner General of Zambia Correctional Service, Mr Frederick S. Chilukutu as the Chair of the Corrections/Prisons Sub-Committee. The meeting started by observing a minute of silence in honour of Malawi’s late Vice President Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima and the other eight (8) people that perished on the 10th of June 2024 in a helicopter accident.
The Commissioner General highlighted that engagements of a statutory nature are vital for enhancing, developing and sharing good practices within the prisons/corrections/penitentiary sector and offer an opportunity to find effective and joint solutions for common challenges. He noted that collective efforts will contribute towards a safer and more just SADC region.
The meeting received a detailed update on the progress and challenges in implementing the Corrections/Prisons Strategic Action Plan 2021-2025 and endorsed key strategic regional instruments, for further approval at the upcoming Ministerial Council of the Organ (MCO), scheduled in July 2024. These instruments are:
Draft SADC Minimum Standards for the Management of Corrections/ Prisons and Treatment and Control of Inmates;
Draft Guideline for Prisoners with special needs;
Draft Guidelines for rehabilitation and reintegration.
The meeting also discussed issues pertaining to health in prisons, as guided by the Nelson Mandela Rules on the Management and Treatment of Prisoners; progress on the ratification of the Protocol on the Inter-State Transfer of Sentenced Offenders; and the importance of the corrections/prisons sector in Peace Support Operations.
As the Corrections/Prisons Strategic Plan 2021-2025 comes to an end in 2025, the C/PSC noted remarkable progress, while recognising that a lot remains to be done at both regional and national levels, and the Committee will engage to review and accommodate emerging trends in prisons management and reform.
