By: Mamajah Jalloh
The Director-General of the Sierra Leone Correctional Service (SLCS), Joseph John Senessie, has appealed for increased government funding to enable the Service to implement its programmes and strengthen correctional facilities during the 2026/2027 financial year.
Senessie made the appeal while presenting the Service’s budget priorities, achievements and challenges, highlighting the need for adequate resources to improve infrastructure, staff welfare, security, healthcare and rehabilitation programmes.
He said the Correctional Service is committed to providing a secure, caring and reliable environment for inmates while protecting society and supporting the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders.
According to Senessie, the Service’s mission is to protect society by keeping inmates in secure and humane conditions while encouraging and assisting them in rehabilitation and reintegration through a professional workforce.
He said the institution’s core values include respect for human rights, accountability, transparency, integrity, equality, tolerance and teamwork.
Reviewing the Service’s budget performance, Senessie highlighted challenges encountered during the 2025 financial year. He noted that the Ministry of Finance’s 2025 Budget Estimates provided funding for personnel emoluments, administration, inmate welfare, food, fuel and capacity development, among other activities.
He also highlighted revenue generated by the Service during the 2025/2026 period and outlined proposed revenue targets for 2027. He said the Service intends to strengthen revenue mobilization through agriculture, industrial production and other income-generating activities.
Agriculture, he said, is expected to play a major role in the Service’s revenue-generation strategy. He noted that the Service is already engaged in farming and livestock production, with the Mafanta Correctional Centre implementing agricultural activities involving inmates.
Senessie called for additional funding to expand these initiatives into large-scale mechanized farming, which he said could contribute to the Service’s revenue mobilization efforts while equipping inmates with productive skills.
The Director-General also highlighted achievements recorded by the Service, including progress in the construction of perimeter wall fencing at Kissy and Waterloo and the recruitment of additional correctional officers.
He further pointed to the construction and improvement of officers’ accommodation facilities across the country as part of efforts to improve staff welfare and working conditions.
The Service’s wider modernization programme also includes the provision of digital case-management infrastructure, recruitment and training of additional correctional officers, improved staff accommodation and the development of income-generating activities.
Despite these developments, Senessie identified several challenges confronting the institution, including overcrowding in correctional centres, inadequate funding, difficulties with suppliers, insufficient staffing, inadequate accommodation for personnel, limited healthcare infrastructure and the absence of a fully digitalized database and records-management system.
He said overcrowding remains a major concern, while improvements are also needed in medical services for inmates and the management of correctional information through digitalization and modern case-management systems.
Looking ahead to the 2026/2027 financial year, Senessie outlined several priorities aimed at strengthening the Service’s capacity to provide secure and humane custody while supporting rehabilitation and reintegration.
The priorities include improving correctional infrastructure, providing additional accommodation for officers, expanding agricultural and industrial activities, improving healthcare facilities, increasing staffing and continuing the digitalization of correctional records.
Senessie stressed that increased investment in infrastructure, human resources, technology, healthcare and productive activities would be essential to achieving these objectives.
He also cited the commissioning of the Service’s new administrative headquarters at New England in March 2026 as part of ongoing efforts to modernize the institution and improve the working environment for its personnel.
As the Service moves into the 2026/2027 financial year, Senessie urged the government and stakeholders to provide continued support to enable the institution to implement its planned programmes and strengthen Sierra Leone’s correctional system.