Senior Lecturer at the University of Cape Coast‘s Department of Crop Science, Dr. Frank Kwekucher Ackah, has raised concerns about the millions of dollars the state spends on maintaining inmates while others benefit from the labor they provide.
According to Dr. Ackah, the current system is flawed, as prison labor is often exploited without benefiting the state or the prisoners themselves. Instead, the labor is often siphoned off by prison officers and other private interests, leaving the state to bear the burden of maintaining a large, underproductive prison population.
Dr. Ackah proposes a reform to make prison labor a tool for both economic growth and inmate rehabilitation. He suggests that inmates could be deployed to state-run farms, where they could work on agricultural projects such as cassava or poultry farming. This initiative would not only help to decongest the prisons but also boost local production, helping to tackle the rising food inflation in Ghana.
By turning inmates into productive workers, the policy could address critical labor shortages in key sectors such as agriculture, while simultaneously reducing the financial burden on the state.
“We are spending millions of cedis maintaining prisoners, but the labor they provide is not being used for national benefit. It’s high time we rethink this approach,” Dr. Ackah said.
With clear goals and targets, Dr. Ackah envisions a system where inmates are incentivized to meet production targets, such as a certain quantity of crops or livestock. Achieving these targets could lead to reduced sentences, giving prisoners a real incentive to engage with their work and contribute to the economy.
In addition to agriculture, Dr. Ackah also highlighted the potential for prison labor to benefit other sectors of the economy. For instance, he pointed out that the construction industry could greatly benefit from the free labor provided by inmates. Public infrastructure projects, such as road construction and the building of government schools, could be completed more cost-effectively by employing inmates in these sectors. By reducing labor costs, the government could save money that could then be reinvested into prison reforms or other important public initiatives.
“Using inmate labor in the construction of roads and government buildings can reduce the overall costs of these projects. The money saved can be used for prison improvement or other critical sectors,” Dr. Ackah noted.
Moreover, Dr. Ackah stressed the importance of utilizing inmate labor in the industrial sector. With many industries in need of labor, prisoners could be put to work in factories or production lines, further contributing to the country’s economic output.
While Dr. Ackah acknowledges the challenges of implementing such a policy, especially concerning security and supervision, he believes these obstacles are manageable with careful planning. His call for reform is a crucial step toward transforming the prison system into a mechanism for both economic development and rehabilitation.
Dr. Ackah’s comments come in the wake of Burkina Faso‘s recent shift in its prison system, where authorities have begun utilizing inmate labor to address food insecurity and bolster the economy. Inspired by this approach, Dr. Ackah believes that Ghana could follow suit and make prison labor a key component in solving some of its most pressing economic challenges.
