Nongovernment organisation (NGO) the National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (Nicro), which provides remedial services for adults and children who have been in conflict with the law, has launched a new technology to allow low-risk offenders to remain in their homes and communities, instead of adding to South Africa’s overcrowded prison population.

The locally developed technology is patented as Remand Revolution and is a system that uses mobile phones to track and communicate with offenders or parolees, in conjunction with Nicro- managed programmes designed to rehabilitate and reintegrate offenders into their communities.

The system includes an ankle bracelet tracking system and a portable alcohol monitoring device that offenders have to use for taking spot-check breathalyser tests. The results and an instant photo of the offender are sent to Nicro.

The thinking behind the technology was driven by South African prisons being critically overcrowded. Recent statistics suggest the population of 152 000 prisoners is about 130% over capacity, says Nicro CEO Soraya Solomon. At least 45 000 of these prisoners are awaiting trial and each prisoner is costing the taxpayer more than R9 800 a month, totalling R1.1-billion a year.

“Government is facing a massive challenge in addressing the prison overcrowding problem, particularly when a large number of low-risk awaiting-trial prisoners would be better served outside the penal system.”

Many of these offenders, once incarcerated, are exposed to more severe criminal elements that impede their chances of rehabilitation. This exposure often leads to their committing far more serious crimes when they are released, particularly if they are disconnected from their families, communities and places of worship, he continues.

Government recognises the value of rehabilitation outside the prison system and is piloting an electronic monitoring system to manage and control offenders and remand detainees within the community.

“The pilot appears to be a success and a bid will be advertised soon to procure a supplier,” says Department of Correctional Services acting deputy commissioner Koos Gerber.

“Our goals are closely aligned with those of the Department of Correctional Services – to reduce overcrowding, strengthen the remand detention system, find viable and practical alternatives to incarceration, improve the parole system and, most importantly, ensure the effective rehabilita- tion of offenders,” says Solomon.