The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Tuesday handed over the rehabilitated boundary fence of the Wau central prison to the local government in Western Bahr el Ghazal State.

The UN mission also installed solar lighting at the detention facility to improve security at night.

The Wau central prison has in the recent past witnessed several and frequent prison breaks due to the facility’s poor protection infrastructure.

While receiving the rehabilitated facility, the state’s prison director, Major General Atok Atem Barac, thanked the UNMISS Human Rights Division for renovating and improving the perimeter fence.

“My sincere thanks to the human rights division for raising this wall, it was two meters but am seeing it is about three meters high,” Gen. Atem said. “This will prevent the escape of prisoners by jumping over it because we have witnessed several times that they escape by jumping over the wall when it was short.”

He added: “We were actually in some trouble when inmates escaped because it was not regarded negligence but as collaboration with inmates.”

For her part, UNMISS’ acting state coordinator, Antonina Okuta, who doubles as the head of the human rights division in the state, said such projects are only achieved when there is peace and rule of law.

“Projects like this cannot be achieved if there is no peace, rule of laws, and respect to human rights,” Okuta said. “The project we are handing over today is a very positive step in this direction. The quick impact projects that UNMISS is undertaking are projects that cost not more than USD 50,000 and are undertaken within a very limited period of time.”

She said such projects are identified by the communities and implemented by local organizations aimed at helping communities with the most needed facilities.

“The human rights division did this together with the prison authorities after identifying the challenges and gaps that have been mentioned here and one of the biggest challenges was the continued escape of inmates from the prison and this escapes endangered the lives of the prison authorities who are here and also endangered the lives of the communities,” Okuta said.

The minister of local government and law enforcement, Kamil Wana Uraj, said the increased height of the wall and installation of razor wire will reduce the rate of escape from the prison.

“The increase of the wall and security wire will reduce the rate of criminals escaping from the prison,” Minister Uraj said. “We have witnessed in the past several escape incidents at the prison and this was because there was no strong protection but let us thank the United Nations and the organization of human rights because they have protected the prison.”

The project funded by United Nations Mission in South Sudan was implemented by a local community-based organization, Change Makers South Sudan (CMSS).