DECOPRIS - Towards more humane detention conditions and reduced reoffending in Ukraine

This project is implemented by the Council of Europe in co-operation with the main partners, namely the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, the State Department of Execution of Criminal Sanctions and other relevant national stakeholders of the penitentiary system in Ukraine.

DECOPRIS is implanted under the auspices of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” 2023-2026. Particularly, the Project addresses the Action Plan’s objective of ‘continued support to the authorities in building modern prison and probation systems with a focus on shifting from punitive to rehabilitative approaches in the context of war and post-war recovery period’.

Building upon the successes of the EU and CoE Joint Project "Support the Prison Reform in Ukraine" (JP SPERU), the EU and CoE Joint Project "Support the Prison Reform in Ukraine Plus" (JP SPERU+), and 11 years of co-operation under the Pompidou Group’s Criminal Justice and Health in Prison Programme, DECOPRIS strategically leverages the reform objectives outlined in Ukraine's "Strategy for Penitentiary Reform 2021-2026."

The overarching goal is to improve conditions and treatment of detainees in Ukraine in line with CoE standards, through the following:

Adopting contemporary instruments on effective prison management by penitentiary system’s decision- and policy-makers.
Promoting dynamic security approaches to prison management and operational staff and increasing their capacity to maintain positive relationships with the inmates with focus on the prevention of ill treatment and torture in prisons.
Developing and enhancing prison management and operational staff capacity to apply new rehabilitation tools and programs that facilitate detainee’s rehabilitation and preparation for release.
Preparing correctional and healthcare staff to implement new programmes targeting detained people with substance use disorders.
Understanding the benefits of a comprehensive drug treatment system in custodial settings and elaborating plans for its sustainable implementation.

The project implementation covers the period 18 December 2023 - 17 December 2026.

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Back Official launch and first Steering Committee meeting of the DECOPRIS project in Ukraine

Marina ACHA

Modified 5 Months ago.

@ Conseil de l'Europe

On 23 April 2024, the Council of Europe Project “Towards more humane detention conditions and reduced reoffending in Ukraine” (hereinafter – DECOPRIS) held its Launching event and the first Steering Committee meeting.

The Project builds on the results achieved within the EU and the CoE Joint Project “Support the Prison Reform in Ukraine” (JP SPERU), the EU and the CoE Joint Project “Support the Prison Reform in Ukraine Plus” (JP SPERU+), and during the 11 years of the Pompidou Group’s Criminal Justice and Health in Prison Programme.

The DECOPRIS Project aims to enhance the protection of prisoners’ rights by way of improving the quality of prison management and rehabilitation of prisoners in Ukraine, in line with the findings of the Council of Europe’s and national monitoring bodies.

Tanja Rakusic-Hadzic, Head of the Council of Europe Division for Cooperation in Police and Deprivation of Liberty, noted in her introductory session that “the <…> Division continues to support the Ukrainian authorities in achieving the goals of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” 2023-2026, in particular on the development of a modern penitentiary system with a focus on shifting from punitive to rehabilitative approaches in the context of war and post-war recovery period”.

Olena Vysotska, Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine, attested the significant progress in the joint implementation of the previous projects in the penitentiary sector and expressed hope for new achievements in the framework of cooperation with the new DECOPRIS Project.

The Launching event was attended by the representatives of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, the State Department for Execution of the Criminal Sanctions, the SDECSU Prison Health Centre, the Prosecutor General Office of Ukraine, the Ombudsperson Office of Ukraine, international organisations, diplomatic missions and civil society organisations who had an opportunity to reflect on the progress made, current needs, and upcoming penitentiary reforms.

During the first Steering Committee meeting of the DECOPRIS Project its members discussed and approved unanimously a 6-month Workplan of the Project. They also agreed to schedule the second meeting of the Steering Committee for October 2024.

These activities were organized within the framework of the ”Towards more humane detention conditions and reduced reoffending in Ukraine” (DECOPRIS).

Ukraine 23 April 2024