All 51 prison inmates who participated in the 2023 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) have secured admission to various pre-tertiary institutions across the country.
Their examination results, ranging between aggregates 16 and 31, ensure their progression to the next level of the academic ladder.
This group includes 26 juveniles from the Senior Correctional Centre in Accra, nine inmates from the Nsawam Medium Security Prisons, eight inmates from the Kumasi Central Prison, and four each from the Ankaful Maximum Security and Sunyani Central Prisons.
Among them, 13 juveniles have been discharged upon completing their terms, while the remaining 38 inmate Senior High School (SHS) freshmen are still serving their sentences. Currently, 13 juveniles remain in prison custody.
Juvenile inmates serve sentences ranging from a minimum of three months to a maximum of three years. In a statement issued by the Head of Media Relations of the Ghana Prisons Service, Deputy Superintendent of Prisons (DSP) Irene Pokuah Wiredu, it was highlighted that “the inmate students have, over the years, justified the investments made in their education.”
The schools
Upon further investigation, The Daily Graphic found that the juvenile inmates, including those who have been discharged, have been placed in various pre-tertiary institutions such as Mfantsipim Senior High School (SHS) in Cape Coast, Labone SHS, St Thomas Aquinas SHS, Accra Technical Training Centre, and Forces SHS, all located in Accra. Juvenile inmates serving sentences attend regular SHSs and are escorted to and from school by prison officers.
Adult inmates who took the BECE are pursuing General Arts or Business courses at SHSs within the Prisons Service premises, under the supervision of the Ghana Education Service. These students benefit from the Free SHS initiative, receiving free tuition, meals, and educational materials from the GES.
The statement highlighted the Ghana Prisons Service’s commitment to its reformation and rehabilitation mandate, aligning with modern universal best practices. The introduction of formal education for inmates includes subjects like English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies.
“Formal education gained its popularity in the prisons in 2007, with the support of the Centre for National Distance Learning and Open Schooling and the Ghana Education Trust Fund,” it added.
Director-General’s remarks
The statement quoted the Director-General of Prisons, Isaac Kofi Egyir, as saying that “prisoner education is one of the surest and safest ways the service had prioritised over the years to reform inmates and provide them with better living upon their release.’’
“It is worthy to note that there is a drastic reduction in the rate of recidivism (the tendency of a convicted criminal to reoffend) for the prisoners who participated in prison education programmes, thereby reducing the recidivism rate in the prisons to the barest minimum,” Mr Egyir stated.
“For those who are serving lengthy sentences, prison education has had a profound and often life-changing benefit on them such as a substantial reduction in violence and disciplinary infractions, breaking down religious and ethnic barriers that sometimes created tension in prisons, significantly improving relations between officers and the inmates, and enhancing the inmates’ self-esteem,” the statement further quoted the Director-General of Prisons.
Other educational projects
Beyond basic school and SHS, the Prisons Service, in partnership with the University of Cape Coast and the Plan Volta Foundation, has introduced the University of Cape Coast Distance Learning Programme which provides tertiary education for prison inmates of the Nsawam Medium Security and Nsawam Female prisons who have excelled in their West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) over the years.
The educational programmes run by the service include University of Cape Coast Distance Programme, National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI)/ICT and Proficiency for Tradesmen, Energy Commission Training and CTVET Electrical Certification Programme.
These, the statement said, would soon be extended to the other prisons across the country.
Currently, it said, 162 prisoners had been enrolled in the College of Distance Education (University of Cape Coast) to study for a Bachelor of Education degree with specialisation in English Language and Social Studies or Mathematics and Science, and a Bachelor of Commerce with specialisation in Accounting and Management.
About eight juveniles, who successfully completed SHS while in detention at the Senior Correctional Centre between 2020 and 2022, are pursuing various programmes at the University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, the University of Energy and Natural Resources in Sunyani, the University of Professional Studies, Accra, and the Technical universities of Accra, Ho and Koforidua, among others.