The Steering Committee on Public Sector Deferred the Approval of Sierra Leone Correctional Service MFR
The Steering Committee has deferred the approval of the Management and Functional Review of the Sierra Leone Correctional Service ( SLCS) and set up a special committee to be headed by the Secretary to the Vice President, to further peruse the report and incorporate the attendant resolutions.
The Secretary to Cabinet and Head of the Civil Service, Mr John Sumailah, who deputized the Secretary to President as chairman of the meeting expressed his admiration for the progress made during the transition process in spite of the numerous challenges.
He encouraged the leadership of the Correctional Service to be steadfast in translating the ensuing challenges into opportunities that will transform the correctional service to international standard.
expected to be.
The Deputy Director-General, SLCS, Madam Susan B Koker, presented the road map and the transition plan from Prisons to Correctional Service highlighting what the institution has achieved, the challenges they have faced and the way forward.
She informed the meeting that the Roadmap was informed by the Mandela Rules, the Child Rights Acts of 2012, the Sierra Leone Constitution Act No.6 of 1991, and Universal Declaration of Human Rights amongst others.
According to the Deputy Director-General, the transition is a demonstration of the government of Sierra Leone’s commitment to the global call for transformation of the prison system to correctional system.
Madam Koker noted that the Road map focused on five thematic areas which are: Enhance Safety and Security of Staff, Welfare of inmates, Reformation, Rehabilitation and Reintegration, Building Human and Logistics Capacity of the Institution and Promotion of staff welfare.
The Director of PSRU, Mr Sulaiman Phoray Musa informed the meeting that the MFR for the SLCS has taken the longest time to developed due to its complexities. Lots of findings were identified during the review process and recommendations have been proffered to address the findings to enable the correctional service become efficient, effective and more functional.
The review identified myriad of obsolete laws and regulations that have impeded progress within the prison service and recommended that all obsolete laws and regulations governing the operations of the Sierra Leone Correctional Service be reviewed, updated and made relevant to meet the current needs of the SLCS.
The review also recommended for the SLCS Act of 2014 to be reviewed in consultation with relevant key stakeholders including the justice and security sectors, as well as Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).
It was further recommended for the development of a regulatory instrument to guide the implementation of the Act.
The review urged the SLCS to utilize the expertise of HRMO to review and develop new job descriptions for the various positions and also develop a scheme of service for all cadres and impressed upon the leadership of SLCS in consultation with HRMO to conduct a Training Needs Assessment together with a training plan and a training Policy to guide the implementation of the training needs identified.
In order to attract quality personnel into the correctional service, the review recommended for the creation of specialized cadres to perform specialized functions that are critical to the effective functionality of the SLCS.
On the area of staffing, the review recommended that SLCS seeks concurrence from the Ministry of Finance and the assistance of the HRMO for the immediate recruitment of Correctional Officers to fill in the existing vacancies together with the development of a Succession Plan to determine the requirements for recruitment/replacement of suitably qualified staff for the new structure and vacant positions.
(C) PSRU COMMUNICATIONS UNIT
© Copyright 2024 Public Sector Reform Unit (PSRU). All rights reserved.
Powered by TpISENT (SL) Limited