The Gambia Prison Service in collaboration with Youth Empowerment Project, International Trade Centre (ITC) who contracted MYFARM training Centre recently concluded a three weeks training of inmates on soap production, Entrepreneurship and Micro Gardening at Mile II central Prison.

In his Keynote address, the Director General of prison, Ansumana Manneh said the partnership between the Gambia Prison Services and Youth Empowerment Project (YEP) with International Trade Centre (ITC) through MYFARM started in 2021 when sixteen (16) inmates were trained on soap production. Out of the sixteen inmates who benefited from the training three (3) of them completed their prison terms and still proceeded to MYFARM training Centre for further supplementary  on soap production. Now those three inmates are successfully contributing their own quotas to nation building.

He further highlighted that this year the project was expanded to include entrepreneurship and Micro Gardening in addition to soap production of which five (5) prison officers both male and female and thirty (30) prisoners also male and female benefited from the project.

"The aim of the training is to teach inmates about general employment skills. The overall goals of training is to reduce inmates' risk of re-offending by teaching them marketable skills they can use to find and retain employment following release from prison. It also aims at reducing institutional problem and behaviors by replacing inmates' idle time with constructive engagements'' he noted.

The Director General extended his profound gratitude and thanks to Youth Empowerment Project (YEP) and International Trade Centre (ITC) for their support and acceptance to sponsor this project, especially the YEP program coordinator Mr. Kebba Secka whose effort to secure this project to the prison is priceless Entrepreneurship, Micro Gardening and soap production....

In his part, the Head of inmates training Chief Superintendent (CSP) Karafa Tamba lamented that the prison should write a proposal for more training to be facilitated for the inmates as to ease access employment after term served.

He noted that in January 2022 YEP called him that the prison had secured some funds for the training of thirty (30) inmates on soap production, Micro Gardening and entrepreneurship for a period of three weeks and had contracted MYFARM for the training.

" The purpose of the initiative is to enable inmates acquire skills on the above areas and self supportive when completed their term served''. He therefore urge the inmates to become ambassadors of change after release and be reintegrated into the society.

Both the Ministry and the donor agencies were thank for the support and prayed for it to continued.