SINCE the previous prison unrest and fire on March 3, 2016 at the Georgetown Prison, the Government of Guyana, through the Ministry of Legal Affairs, has been assiduously working on addressing the issue of overcrowding at the prisons.
To this end, the Government of Guyana has secured financing, in the form of a US$8M loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for the “Support for the Criminal Justice System Project.”

The project became eligible for funding on June 16, 2017. The key objectives of the project are reducing the use of pre-trial detention, and increasing the use of alternative sentencing.
The Ministry of Legal Affairs, the Supreme Court of Judicature, the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Social Protection, and the Ministry of Finance are the main stakeholders of this project.
Moreover, being the executing agency, the Ministry of Legal Affairs has demonstrated administrative capacity and commitment to oversee this project.
Early last week, the scheduled project launch was unfortunately cancelled due to the recent prison disturbance.

Nonetheless, the project workshop was held, and among the key outputs discussed was the establishment of a Legal Aid pilot project, which will provide legal assistance to persons accused of minor, non-violent offences in pre-trial detention.
Other matters were: Enhancing the capacity of the DPP and Police Prosecutors to handle their cases before they proceed to trial; building capacity enhancement at the level of the magistracy to expedite cases and address alternative sentencing; implementing a restorative justice pilot project under the Ministry of Legal Affairs to solve minor offences or disputes; strengthening of the Probation Service to perform adequate follow- up of treatments delivered in and after prison, so as to better tend to the rehabilitative needs of those who present a lesser risk of re-offending; and strengthening the Law Reform Commission at the Ministry of Legal Affairs in its role of drafting new legislation, introducing non-custodial sanctions suitable for different types of offences.
A Project Steering Committee, chaired by the Ministry of Legal Affairs, has been established to provide oversight and strategic direction for the project.