702 prisoners struggle with severe undernourishment

At least 702 prisoners in Malawi are severely undernourished, raising fresh concerns about the conditions in which inmates are living and the ability of the country’s prisons to provide adequate food.

A report on food provision conducted in 27 of the country’s 28 prisons found that 702 of the 16,237 prisoners assessed were severely undernourished, with most inmates receiving only one meal of beans and nsima a day.

The report also found that some prisons have at times had no food, highlighting the difficulties facing the Malawi Prison Service in meeting the basic nutritional needs of people in its custody.

However, Malawi Prison Service says it has started changing the way inmates are fed, moving from one meal a day to three meals a day.

Prison Service spokesperson Steve Meke said almost two-thirds of prison stations have already adopted the three-meal arrangement, with the remaining stations expected to follow once challenges such as a shortage of cooking pots are addressed.

“We are moving from a punitive approach to a rehabilitation approach because these are human beings and we need to treat them as such,” Meke said.

Meke said the change reflects the Service’s shift from a punitive approach towards rehabilitation, arguing that prisoners should be treated as human beings while being prepared to return to their communities.

He said the Service still needs government funding but is also looking at commercialising prison industries to generate revenue and support prison programmes.

The move is also intended to equip inmates with practical skills that can help them earn a living after completing their sentences.

The findings, however, raise questions about how quickly the new three-meal system can reach all prisoners and whether increased funding is needed to address the nutritional challenges facing inmates.

For the 702 severely undernourished prisoners, the issue goes beyond prison policy or budgets, it is about having enough food to maintain their health and dignity while serving their sentences.