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Good practice Imported

Digital Literacy Programme for Kenya's Correctional Institutions

Kenya · Nairobi · See the Kenya profile · See the Nairobi profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 85% 48/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

In early 2026, Kenya's State Department for Correctional Services, Close the Gap and Tech Kids Africa installed 250 refurbished computers across 14 correctional institutions, running a three-month digital-literacy curriculum aimed mainly at young and women offenders.

250 computers
Desktop computers distributed
14 institutions
Correctional institutions covered
Digital Literacy Programme for Kenya's Correctional Institutions

Details

Maturity
Pilot
Promoter
State Department for Correctional Services (Kenya), with Close the Gap Kenya and Tech Kids Africa
Period
January–April 2026
Keywords
prison education, digital literacy, youth offenders, women offenders, ICT skills, rehabilitation

Context

In early 2026, Kenya's State Department for Correctional Services, together with Close the Gap Kenya and Tech Kids Africa, launched a digital skills programme in the country's correctional institutions, targeting young and women offenders across facilities such as Shikusa Borstal, Kamae Girls Borstal and several women's prisons.

Objectives

The programme aims to equip incarcerated youth and women with employable digital skills, using a circular-economy approach to computer repair and market-relevant training rather than basic digital literacy alone.

Activities

Some 250 desktop computers were distributed across 14 correctional institutions, supporting a three-month training cycle covering computer maintenance, graphic design, CCTV installation and computer networking.

Conclusions

As a programme launched in 2026, no data on training completion, post-release employment or recidivism have yet been published, so its effectiveness cannot currently be assessed.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Low (< €50k)
Time to results
Short (< 1 year)
Staffing & skills
Delivered via partnership between the State Department for Correctional Services, Close the Gap Kenya, and Tech Kids Africa, Curriculum delivered by instructors covering computer maintenance, graphic design, CCTV installation and computer networking

Conditions for success

  • Availability of desktop computer hardware at each participating institution
  • Curriculum aligned with market-relevant, employable skills rather than basic literacy alone

Common failure modes

  • No completion, employment or recidivism data have been collected, limiting any demonstration of impact

Commonly funded by

National / regional programmes

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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