As part of resolving the overcrowding that plagues the country's nearly 160 penitentiary establishments, Mozambique has outlined a plan for the current year that consists of building at least 10 new prisons. This ambitious project was made public last Tuesday.
Helena Kida, the Minister of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs, told the local press that the new constructions correspond to an expected investment in the order of 2.7 million meticais (equivalent to 37,500 euros). In addition, the minister revealed that the plan includes the rehabilitation of several open centres that are in an advanced state of disrepair.
This action plan is an integral part of the broader project "One district, one decent prison", which envisages the construction of a total of 63 prison units throughout Mozambican territory. The current prison facilities, spread across regional, provincial and district levels, are overcrowded, housing close to 21,000 inmates, a number significantly higher than the maximum installed capacity of 4,498 people, according to the most recent data, provided by the Ministry of Justice in 2020.
At the end of 2022, shortly before the Christmas celebrations, the Mozambican Head of State granted pardons to 809 inmates from different establishments with a view to protecting human dignity and thus demonstrating his firm conviction in the individual's capacity for regeneration, rehabilitation and social reintegration.
