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The Ministry of Interior, along with the Perfector of Sentiments Foundation (POS) and other partners, recently organized a workshop in Accra to review the final draft of a Community Service Bill.

This bill was created in response to public demands for an alternative to sending people who commit minor offenses to prison. The goal is to ease prison overcrowding and save the government money.

The workshop involved representatives from the Ministry of Interior, the Attorney General's office, the Ministry of Justice, the Open Society Initiative for West Africa.

Doreen Annan, the Director of Finance and Administration at the Ministry of Interior, spoke on behalf of the Minister for Interior, Ambrose Dery. She emphasized that the Community Service Bill would not only reduce the strain on prisons but also help the government's financial situation.

"The issue of non custodial sentencing is one of the key deliverables of the Ministry of the Interior which the Ministry is committed to its implementation. Again, in the wake of financial constraints of Government, the Ghana Prison Service is also faced with a number of Challenges with huge feeding cost ( $1.80 per day) for inmates, over crowding of inmates and the resultant health challenges as well as the payment of huge medical bills by government," she said.

Jonathan Osei Owusu, the Executive Director of the Perfector of Sentiments Foundation, explained that the bill aims to offer individuals who commit minor offenses a chance for rehabilitation rather than harsh punishments that could harm their future.

"We are proposing for the amendment of the Criminal offences and other offences ( Procedure) ACT. We believe once the ACT is amended, Judges will have the opportunity to sentence persons who commit minor offences to Community services"

Madam Felicia Dapaah, Chief Director of the Office of the Head of Local Government Service, pointed out that passing the Community Service Bill into law would save the government money, which could be used for other important purposes in the economy.

"This bill when passed into law will assist in reducing the financial burden on the government and the money saved could be channelled into other productive sectors of the economy" She remarked"