Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi urged greater investment in skills development and rehabilitation programmes within Kenya’s correctional institutions, saying such initiatives could generate jobs, spur economic growth and enhance community safety.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the fourth Correctional Services Week in Nairobi, Mudavadi highlighted that equipping offenders with marketable skills and creating pathways to employment or entrepreneurship would improve their reintegration while supporting the government’s Bottom‑Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).

He stressed that effective correctional services must go beyond confinement, reducing re‑offending by providing inmates with the tools and support needed to rebuild their lives.

Mudavadi called for continuity between custodial and non‑custodial interventions, urging that rehabilitation extend beyond prison walls to involve families, communities and other support systems.

He urged the State Department for Correctional Services, technical teams and partners to set up a clear implementation framework with defined responsibilities and measurable outcomes for the reforms adopted during the week.

Principal Secretary Salome Beacco added that digital transformation in prisons should prioritize human dignity, accountability and operational efficiency, rather than merely acquiring new technology.

Beacco also reaffirmed the government’s plan to shift correctional facilities to liquefied petroleum gas and other clean‑energy solutions, framing the move as a health, economic and human‑rights imperative.

Mudavadi concluded the event by urging stakeholders to translate the week’s communiqué and resolutions into concrete actions that benefit correctional officers, offenders and the wider public.