Some of the inmates at the Worcester Correctional Centre’s male facility in the Western Cape are sleeping underneath their beds and in passages due to the severe overcrowding at the prison.
This was revealed by Thembelihle Nhlanzi-Ngema, the director of Legal Services at the Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services (JICS).
Nhlanzi-Ngema revealed this information on Tuesday during parliament’s Correctional Services Portfolio Committee meeting. During this meeting the JICS was presenting its first quarter report for the 2025-2026 financial year. The report covers the period of April to June 2025.
The JICS is an organ of the South African Government whose mandate is to uphold and protect the rights of all inmates who are incarcerated. JICS is responsible for the independent oversight of the Department of Correctional Services.
JICS Inspecting Judge Justice Edwin Cameron was also present during the parliament meeting.
Unannounced visits
During the meeting, Nhlanzi-Ngema said the JICS conducted 18 unannounced inspections of prisons between April and June.
She said JICS uses a three-tier system when evaluating correctional facilities during inspections.
“Facilities rated ‘good’ require minimal or no improvement and are typically managed well by the head of the correctional centre (HCC). Facilities rated ‘satisfactory’ have identified areas for improvement according to the inspection report but are, on average, managed adequately by the HCC.
“Facilities rated ‘unsatisfactory’ require significant improvements across most or all evaluated aspects during the inspection. Management of these facilities is generally insufficient,” said Nhlanzi-Ngema.
Nhlanzi-Ngema said out of the 18 unannounced inspections, 11 centres were rated satisfactory, six were rated good, and one was rated unsatisfactory.
She said the Worcester Correctional Facility for males in the Western Cape was inspected unannounced on June 12, and it was rated unsatisfactory.
Bursting at the seams
Nhlanzi-Ngema said the prison is severely overcrowded at 221%.
“Some inmates are sleeping under beds and in passages. The infrastructure is dilapidated, and the cells are dirty,” said Nhlanzi-Ngema.
When the JICS team does the inspections, Nhlanzi-Ngema said, it rates the correctional facilities based on the condition of the centre, the condition of the kitchen, cells, medical facilities, availability of professional services, programmes offered, availability of telephones, overcrowding, security and treatment of inmates, among others.
Nhlanzi-Ngema said the JICS team conducted 40 planned, announced inspections of centres during the period under review.
The Vryheid Correctional Centre in KwaZulu-Natal was rated unsatisfactory during an announced inspection at the prison. Nhlanzi-Ngema said.
The centre was overcrowded, she added, had cracked walls, had paint peeling off, had ablution facilities in bad condition and had poor infrastructure.
Nhlanzi-Ngema said the Elliotdale Correctional Centre in the Eastern Cape was rated unsatisfactory during its announced inspection.
The facility’s clinic is not in good condition, the centre is overcrowded with only one nurse available, and the kitchen is clean but not in a good state, said Nhlanzi-Ngema.
