Ghana Prisons Service Establishment

By | February 20, 2020

Ghana Prisons Service Establishment

PRISON ESTABLISHMENTS
The Ghana Prisons Service comprises 45/forty five establishments as follows:

  • Prisons Headquarters
  • Prison Officers’ Training School
  • Senior Correctional Centre (formerly Ghana Borstal Institute)
  • 1/One Maximum Security Prison
  • 1/One Medium Security Prison
  • 7/Seven Central Prisons
  • 7/Seven Female Prisons
  • 14/Fourteen Local Prisons
  • 3/Three Open Camp Prisons
  • 9/Nine Agricultural Settlement Camp Prisons

In general, prisons are classified under three main security categories namely; Maximum, Medium and Minimum. However, due to inadequate facilities, prisons in Ghana are classified based on activities undertaken at the various prison establishments.
In Central Prisons, trade training facilities are provided to equip prisoners with employable skills for their effective reintegration into the society. They take custody of Long Sentenced prisoners. The central point for all categories of prisoners with exception of condemned prisoners.
Local Prisons concentrate on safe custody and welfare of inmates due to lack of space for trade training activities. They take custody of Short Sentenced prisoners.
Open Camp Prisons undertake agricultural activities to provide food and train inmates in modern agricultural practices. Prisoners who are about to go on discharge are transferred to these facilities as a transit to prepare them for their final release into the larger society.
In Agricultural Settlement Camps, the security arrangement is very relaxed. They are usually not fenced. The main objective is to train inmates who are about to go on discharge in Agricultural activities and to produce enough food to supplement the feeding of inmates and generate some income for the Service.

  • NON-INMATE HOLDING FACILITIES >>

    PRISONS HEADQUARTERS

    It is sited on 4.147 acre land. It shares wall with the female prison on the West, the workshop block and quarters block C on the east. The categories of prisoners are Convicts Prisoners, Remand Prisoners, Trial Prisoners and Lodgers


    SENIOR CORRECTIONAL CENTRE

    This is the only institution in the country at the moment that caters for young offenders and juveniles. The centre takes care of these young offenders by training them for a period between six/6 month and two/ 2 years in various vocational trades like Welding, Vulcanizing, Tailoring, Carpentry, Draftsmanship, Auto electrical and mechanical and General Electricals. They are also given tuition in the classroom, ICT and Moral education.


    PRISONS OFFICERS’ TRAINING SCHOOL

    The Prison Officers Training School (POTS) was established in September 1947 It was then known as Warders Training Depot. Prior to that, it was the training ground of the Signal Regiment of the Royal West African Frontier Force. On 1st January 1964, when the Prisons department became autonomous and was renamed Ghana Prisons Service, the Warders Training Deport which was headed by the Training Officer also had its name changed to the Prisons Officers Training School. The designation of the head of this Institution remained unchanged until 1974 when it became “Commandant”.

     

    MAXIMUM PRISON

    The Maximum Security is a highly fortitied prison facility designed to hold the most aggressive and incorrigible inmates.
    The facility meets international maximum-security specifications and standards. Having an authorized capacity of two thousand prisoners, the facility has a modern health centre, a multipurpose court, a football park, inmates’ dormitories, and an administrative block. The rest being a kitchen, a corn mill house, admission and discharge block visitors’ lounge, a gate lodge, a standby generator and a bio gas plant among others.
    There is strict control and monitoring of inmates’ movement. Staff inmate interraction is very minimal in this facility with a 24-hour surveillance of inmates and the entire facility.

     

    MEDIUM PRISON

    This facility comes close to the Maximum Security facility but with less emphasis on internal fortification. Until the provision of a maximum prison facility in 2011, the Medium Security facility was used to hold high sentence and aggressive prisoners. Currently there is only one such facility in the country which is located at Nsawam in the Eastern Region of Ghana. The Nsawam Medium Security Prison is established on a one (1) mile square plot of land located at the outskirts of the Nsawam Township.

     

    CENTRAL PRISONS

    The Central Prisons are facilities also known as Minimum Security Facility. There are seven of such facilities in the country which are mainly located in the administrative capitals of the regions With the exception of Central, Greater Accra, and Eastern regions. due to limited facilities, these prisons facilities performs same functions as the Medium Security. Thus, they hold high sentence prisoners. Currently the central prisons facilities in the the country are as follows:

    • Kumasi Central
    • Ho Central Prisons
    • Sekondi Central Prisons
    • Tamale Central Prisons
    • Wa Central Prisons
    • Navrongo Central Prisons
    • Sunyani Central Prisons

LOCAL PRISON

The Local Prisons are facilities also known as Minimal Internal Security fortification. There are seven of such facilities in the country which are mainly located in the administrative capitals of the regions With the exception of Central, Greater Accra, and Eastern regions. due to limited facilities, these prisons facilities performs same functions as the Medium Security. Thus, they hold high sentence prisoners.

Currently the central prisons facilities in the the country are as follows:

  • Koforidua Local Prison
  • Obuasi Local Prison
  • Bawku Local Prison
  • Akuse Local Prison
  • Tarkwa Local Prison
  • Manhyia Local Prison
  • Salaga Local Prison
  • Gambaga Local Prison
  • Yendi Local Prison
  • Winneba Local Prison
  • Kpando Local Prison
  • Kete krachi Local Prison

 

CAMP PRISON 

Currently the camp prisons facilities in the the country are as follows:

  • Awutu Camp Prison
  • Amanfrom Camp Prison
  • Ahinsan Camp Prison
  • Ankaful Main Camp Prison
  • Hiawa Camp Prison
  • Kenyasi CampPrison
  • Ekuasi Camp Prison
  • Forifori Camp Prison
  • Yeji Camp Prison
  • Duayaw Nkwanta Camp Prison

 

FEMALE PRISONS 

The Female Prisons are facilities that are dedicate to hold female offenders in accordance with international standards of correctional management There are seven of such facilities in the country which are mainly located in the administrative capitals of the regions With the exception of Central, Greater Accra and the Upper regions. due to limited facilities, these prisons facilities performs same functions as the Medium Security. Thus, they hold high sentence prisoners. Currently the female prison facilities in the the country are as follows:

  • Kumasi Female
  • Ho Female
  • Sekondi Female
  • Tamale Female
  • Nsawam Female
  • Akuse Female
  • Sunyani Female

 

SPECIAL INMATE HOLDING PRISON 

CONTAGEOUS DISEASE PRISON (CDP)

The communicable disease prison was established as a subsidiary Prison alongside the Main Camp Prison, Ankaful in 1948 to take care of Prisoners suffering from TB and Leprosy illness. In 1983, Communicable Disease Prison was made autonomous from Main Camp Prison Ankaful. The maximum inbuilt capacity is currently 84 to take care of all inmates sick of TB and Leprosy from all the prisons in Ghana.
The prison is located at Ankaful a suburb of Cape Coast. The prison has a land size of 96×84 meters. Communicable Disease Prison has no farm land but a parcel of land for garden to grow vegetables to supplement inmates’ diet.

Categories of Prisoners

All categories of prisoners are admitted into the prison for the treatment of communicable diseases.

 
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See Also:

Ghana Police Service

Ghana Immigration Service GIS

Ghana National Fire Service GNFS

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