Malawi Prison Service (MPS) says it is elevated by the 2021 Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) results in the country’s prisons, a true indication that in that the institutions are providing quality education.
The pass rate among inmates who sat for the exams increased from 50 percent in 2020 to 55.6 percent in 2021.
Speaking recently in an interview, MPS spokesperson Chimwemwe Shawa said 44 out of 79 inmates who sat for MSCE passed the examinations and that the best performer is from Mzuzu Prison with an aggregate score of 18 points.
“This is an indication that we are providing reformative, arbitrative and reintegration programs in inmates amidst the many challenges we face to provide quality education,” Shawa said.
He said what makes the feat even more pronounced is the fact that it has come amidst a myriad of setbacks.
“We lack critical resources such as adequate qualified teachers, science laboratories, well stocked libraries, teaching and learning materials. Despite of all of these challenges, MPS strives to provide education to inmates as one way of reforming them so that they can be productive citizens,” he said.
Shaba then appealed for support from stakeholders and well-wishers who would wish to join MPS in reforming inmates through provision of quality education.
Education activist and Executive Director for Civil Society Education Coalition (CSEC), Benedicto Kondowe said there is need to provide enabling environment in prisons appreciating that prisons are already constrained in terms of infrastructure.
“But every effort must be made to make sure that we provide learning facilities within the prisons so that inmates’ right to education are also guaranteed,” Kondowe said.
He said provision of education to inmates is in consistent with reforms in prisons. “Inmates should be provided with prerequisite competences and capacities so that they contribute towards the country’s development once they are out.