In a ceremony at the Moyamba Correctional Facility, UN Resident Coordinator Dr. Babatunde A. Ahonsi and United States Ambassador David Reimer handed over a new solar powered system to provide clean water for the inmates and correctional staff.

The water facility, including a borehole, water tower, and solar-powered pump systems, is part of joint work by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the United States to support the strengthening of the criminal justice sector in Sierra Leone while protecting human rights.

“This joint initiative demonstrates how much can be achieved when efforts are harnessed around the same goal. We are proud of the work so far accomplished and UNDP remains committed to achieving sustainable results that are anchored around the SDGs”, stated the UNDP Resident Representative Pa Lamin Biyai.

“Nelson Mandela noted that no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails,” stated Ambassador Reimer. “Since 2014, the United States and UNDP in partnership with the Government of Sierra Leone have strengthened service delivery within Sierra Leone’s criminal justice system.  We hope these installations will provide water for many years to come – protecting the health and human dignity of the inmates and corrections staff here.”

As part of the UNDP/INL program, boreholes, water towers and solar-powered systems have been installed in the Port Loko, Moyamba and Bo correctional facilities.  The program also works to institute needed reforms in the criminal justice sector to enhance case management, reduce overcrowding and to assist in the rehabilitation of inmates after their release.