CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Conclusions and Recommendations of the Workshop onStrategies and Best Practices against Overcrowding
in Correctional Facilities
The Workshop reached the following conclusions and recommendations:1.

Overcrowding in correctional facilities is one of the most serious impediments to compliance by
Member States with relevant United Nations instruments and standards and norms and violates
the human rights of inmates;
2. Crime is a social problem to which criminal justice systems can provide only part of the solution.
Taking action against poverty and social marginalization is key to preventing crime and violence
and, in turn, reducing prison overcrowding;
3. Member States should deﬁne prison overcrowding as an unacceptable violation of human rights
and consider establishing a legal limit to their prison capacity;
4. Member States should consider reviewing, evaluating and updating their policies, laws andpractices to ensure the development of a comprehensive criminal justice strategy to address theproblem of prison overcrowding, which should include reducing the use of imprisonment andincreasing the use of alternatives to prison, including restorative justice programmes;
5. Policies and strategies to address prison overcrowding should be evidence-based;
6. Member States should implement reforms and strategies to reduce overcrowding in a manner thatis gender-sensitive and that eﬀectively responds to the needs of the most vulnerable groups;
7. Member States are encouraged to review the adequacy of legal aid and other measures, including
the use of trained paralegals, with a view to strengthening access to justice and public defence
mechanisms to review of the necessity of pre-trial detention;
8. Member States are invited to conduct a system-wide review to identify inefficiencies in thecriminal justice process that contribute to prolonged periods of custody during the pre-trial andtrial processes, and to develop strategies to improve the eﬃciency of the criminal justice process,which includes measures to reduce case backlogs, and to consider introducing time limits ondetention;
9. Member States should be encouraged to introduce measures providing for the early release ofprisoners from correctional institutions, such as referral to halfway houses, electronic monitoring
and reduction of sentences for good behaviour. Member States should consider reviewing theirrevocation procedures to prevent unnecessary return to prison;
10. Member States are invited to develop parole and probation systems;
11. Member States should ensure effective implementation of alternatives to imprisonment byproviding necessary infrastructure and resources;
12. Member States should promote the participation of civil society organizations and local
communities in implementing alternatives to prison;
13. Member States should raise awareness and encourage comprehensive consultative processes,
involving the participation of all relevant sectors of government, civil society, in particular
victimsʼ associations, and other stakeholders in the development and implementation of national
strategies, including action plans, to address overcrowding;
14. Member States should ensure that evidence-based information on crime and criminal justice iscommunicated to legislators, politicians, decision makers, criminal justice practitioners, the public
and the media. For this purpose, Member States should be encouraged to continue research on
factors contributing to prison overcrowding;
15. Relevant offices and bodies of the United Nations working on different issues relevant to theproblem of prison overcrowding should strive to better co-ordinate their activities and initiatives
in order to more eﬀectively assist countries in reducing prison overcrowding; and261

16. UNODC should continue to provide assistance and support to countries, upon their request, toaddress prison overcrowding.

262