Rwanda promotes the spirit of self-reliance among the population and encourages government institutions and citizens to devise ways of improving their income as well as easing budget constraints. To support this call, the Rwanda Correctional Services are running a number of income generating activities from which they are already earning billions.

The Ministry of Justice has also started the process to set up a company, Muhabura MultiChoice Company, which seeks to enhance Rwanda Correctional Services (RCS) self-reliance and productivity from such activities. The law to operationalise the company is already in place, officials said.

RCS was allocated Rwf534.1 million under the current budget to manage these projects.

The institution’s income generating activities include agriculture, livestock keeping, making cooking utensils and biogas plants, Hilary Sengabo, the spokesperson of RCS, told Business Times.

The facility also operates cottage industries for making different types of laundry and cleaning soaps; weaving, carpentry, handicraft, welding, tailoring and construction of different facilities such as houses, roads, and bridges, among others. These activities generated over Rwf1.4 billion during the 2016/2017 fiscal year, according to Sengabo.

"From these activities, Rwf528.5 million was collected while debts still owed to RCS by stakeholders for the 2016/17 fiscal year are Rwf32.6 million,” Sengabo said.

Last year, RCS was allocated Rwf6.4 billion, while the institution was allocated Rwf8 billion this year to feed the inmates and run other institutional activities, figures show.

Income from agriculture

Sengabo explained that revenues from agricultural activities are worth Rwf412.2 million, noting that the institution owns 167 cows, 400 pigs and 143 goats.

The institution also started dialogue with Mulindi Tea Company to revive the current tea plantation and to plant new one on the rest of Gicumbi prison’s arable land, according to the RCS deputy Commissioner General Jeanne Chantal Ujeneza, who is part of the talks.

The prison has 14.5 hectares of land under a tea plantation. The land is leased by Mulindi Tea Factory at Rwf300,000 per month.

Last month, officials from RCS and Mulindi Tea agreed to expand the current tea plantation to enable the factory to increase its production capacity.

Under the deal, the correctional facility will plant over 20 hectares with tea seedlings.Construction skills

Works for public interest for different institutions carried out by the facility are valued at Rwf329.6 million, according to Sengabo.

"Construction works, including repairs, have been carried out on correctional facilities such as Mageragere, Huye, Rubavu and RCS training school,” he said, adding that the activities are still ongoing.

During the 2015/16 fiscal year, inmates contributed labour to Mageragere, Rwamagana, Rubavu and RCS training facility at total cost of Rwf515 million, which the government could have spent on private entrepreneurs. RCS has been constructing Mageragere, Rubavu, Rwamagana prison facilities and RCS training centre at the cost of Rwf2 billion, the official said.

The 2017/18 Forward Looking Joint Sector Review report indicates that there is a target to save 30 per cent of budget allocated to RCS for construction activities this financial year. These activities enable prisoners to acquire hands-on skills.

Manufacturing

RCS inmates produced soaps worth Rwf165.4 million last fiscal year, according to Sengabo. Different cottage industries run by the facility produce hygiene materials, such as liquid chlorine and bar soaps that are used for washing, killing bacteria, among others. The projects were funded by the International Committee of the Red Cross in Rwanda until July 18, 2017 when they were handed over to the Rwanda Correctional Services.

RCS earned Rwf40 million from making large cooking utensils (pans) which are used in prisons or sold to other clients, the RCS spokesperson explained.

Sengabo said the facility used biogas (35 per cent) to cook, while firewood is at 64.6 per cent.

Previously, over Rwf1 billion was spent on firewood each year by the different RCS facilities from across the country. However, after the institution embraced renewable energy using biogas, this amount has been reduced considerably, Sengabo said.

For instance, one prison can use one square meter of wood compared to the 14 that were required to cook meals for the 3,000 inmates on a daily basis, figures show.

"One cubic meter (one bundle) costs between Rwf15,000 and Rwf20,000. Considering that currently 35 per cent of cooking fuel is biogas, we can clearly see how the project is saving money that government would have spent on buying firewood,” Sengabo said.

Weaving, carpentry, handcraft, welding, tailoring also contributed toward the facility’s revenue generating to supplement government funding.