Prisons Ministry initiates ‘Halfway Home Project’: Six ex-inmates admitted
A capacity-enhancement and rehabilitation project developed by the Prisons Ministry of Ghana to enable discharged prisoners reintegrate into communities of their choice has admitted six ex-inmates into residence to commence farming and other income earning activities.
Dubbed, the ‘Halfway Home Project’ and funded mainly by individuals and organisations with the Presbyterian, Methodist, Evangelical Presbyterian, Anglican churches among a host of others being partnering-churches, the centre would afford discharged prisoners opportunities to engage in income earning activities to support and care for themselves.
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Already, the six people in residence have commenced vegetable and cash crop farming on parts of the 107 acre land acquired by the Prisons Ministry some 31 years ago to house vocational and skills training workshops among other facilities.
Solar System
Speaking at the commissioning of the solar and water system at the facility at Kusunya near Asutsuare in the Greater Accra Region on Tuesday, the founding Chairman of the Prisons Ministry, Mr Sam Okudzeto, indicated that the ‘Halfway Home Project’ is being developed in phases to have hostel facilities, skills training hubs, as well as agriculture production facilities.
The installation was funded by GIZ, Bofam Foundation and DENG Limited at the cost of GH¢150, 000.
Already, cultivation of vegetable and cash crop such as mango, coconut, noni were underway while the Ministry sought for funding for the development of the vocational and skills training workshops.
Mr Okudzeto indicated that the Ministry has identified that many discharged prisoners have nowhere go as a result of the rejection they face from families and the general society.
“The ex-convict tag has made it difficult for many of such people to properly integrate into society as apart from facing rejections from families, they are also denied employment opportunities,” Mr Okudzeto said.
That, he said, informed the acquisition of the land some 31 years ago to initiate the ‘Halfway Home Project’ to help them with capacity enhancement and also enable them earn an income to help them determine their future.
Mr Okudzeto who also doubles as a member of the Council of State stressed that the operationalisation of the centre had delayed due to the unavailability of electricity and water since the location made it difficult for the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to extend power to until Deng Limited and the two partners came to their rescue to provide the solar lighting system to help pump water for productive activities.
Expansion
He also announced that the Ministry has acquired lands at Bimbilla in the Northern Region as well as another in the Western Region since the idea was for them to establish the project in every part of the country where prisons are located.
Mr Okudzeto also pointed out that the number of people going in and out of prisons are huge, with many being repeated offenders as a result of rejection and not having a place to lay their heads, hence, committing more offences so they could get locked up again.
“So the more of these halfway institutions we are able to establish, the better it will be for the country since there will be less crime as a result of more people being able to learn to earn a living for themselves,” he said.
Government Subvention
The Prisons Service, he stressed, could provide opportunities where inmates serving various terms for least offences could undertake gainful activities as an income earner for themselves and the service as a whole.
“I believe the Ghana Prisons Service may not need subvention from the government if the systems are properly organised. They should be able to earn enough income so by the time they are discharged, they could have had enough reserve income with them to take along to start a new life for themselves by way of entrepreneurship,” Mr Okudzeto said.
GIZ
The Project Manager of the Green People’s Energy Project at GIZ, Mr Wiesel Rafael in his remarks said that communities in rural areas have a high potential for economic activities, hence the GIZ’s support to farmers to acquire irrigation systems.
Ghana, he said, needed a lot of pumping systems to empower farmers in communities, “and we see the project as an opportunity for discharged prisoners to start a new life,” he said
Deng Limited
The Chairman of DENG Limited, Mr Felix Quansar, in his remarks also pointed out that the halfway project is a classic example of promoting social equity and ensuring discharged prisoners can have their lives again and with Christian living and work ethics.
The Director of Agriculture at the Akuse Prisons, DOP Hanson Awuku for his part, commended the Prisons Ministry for the project, which he said would be useful for the integration of ex-prisoners into society and expressed the hope that the centre would offer a real life transformation for them.