Ouagadougou: Sentences of at least 22 prisoners have been converted into community service at the Ouaga 1 and Ouaga 2 High Courts, as announced by Mr. Lassan© Guelb©ogo, a sentence enforcement judge at the Ouaga 1 High Court. This initiative allows convicted individuals to contribute to community development through their work.
According to Burkina Information Agency, Mr. Guelb©ogo made this announcement at the Ouagadougou Detention and Correctional Facility (MACO) during the 72 hours of the 2025 Sentence Enforcement Commissions (CAP). He highlighted that more prisoners are expected to benefit from similar sentence conversion measures soon. The alternative sentencing aims to reduce the prison population and the associated costs for the state, while enabling prisoners to participate in community development.
The Sentence Enforcement Commissions of the Ouaga 1 and Ouaga 2 High Courts are currently conducting the 4th edition of the 72 Hours of Community Service (CAP) at MACO from June 25 to 27, 2025. This event is themed “Implementation of Community Service: Issues, Challenges, and Prospects” and includes activities such as community meals, distribution of clothing and soap, sports competitions, and panel discussions.
The Ouaga 1 and Ouaga 2 sentence enforcement commissions have consistently worked to make detention more humane. Over the past three years, they have organized community meals for inmates and contributed to the maintenance of detention facilities. Their efforts include disinfecting buildings, cleaning septic tanks, covering health costs for inmates, and supporting those with diabetes and hypertension. They have also organized awareness sessions on drugs and facilitated health screenings for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, and tuberculosis in collaboration with partner organizations.