The first Meeting of the Penitentiary Academies Network (RAP) was held in Uruguay, and was attended by the prosecretary of the Presidency of the Republic and president of AUCI, Rodrigo Ferrés; the Minister of the Interior, Luis Alberto Heber; the Ambassador of the European Union, Paolo Berizzi and Rosanna Olivera, president of the National Institute for Adolescent Social Inclusion (INISA). They all agreed on the importance of sharing information and experiences between all the countries that make up the RAP and advocated that they all work together to create the necessary tools for the effective fighting of organised crime.
The first Penitentiary Training Academy was officially opened in Uruguay
Attended by representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Italy and Paraguay, the INISA Penitentiary Training Academy was officially opened. According to Rosanna Olivera at the inauguration on 6 April in Uruguay, EL PAcCTO has been a cornerstone of the project.
At the new Penitentiary Training Academy, professionalising educators will be the main objective, structuring penitentiary schools, implementing educational measures and working on a common curricula that can offer incarcerated people facilities to help them reintegrate into society. The Uruguayan authorities explained that enormous investments are being made in infrastructure to offer people in prison and society a solution for the more than 14,000 inmates, more than 4,000 of whom live in overcrowded conditions.
Three days sharing experiences
The first round table discussion revolved around the most outstanding achievements of the year in terms of school structuring, courtesy of Fátima Cabrera Brambilla, director of the Higher Technical Institute for Prison Training and Education of Paraguay, which opened in December 2021. Stephane Silva de Araujo who promoted the creation of a network of prison schools in Brazil based on the RAP model was also in attendance.
They also dealt with the role of schools, study plans, the fight against corruption and security dynamics. The participants also had the opportunity to visit the National Rehabilitation Institute centres (INR) and the National Institute for Adolescent Social Inclusion (INISA) where they met and talked to professionals in the field.
The RAP signs agreements to improve the prison system in the Latin American region
The Memorandum of Operational Understanding was signed and the secretariat of the Network of Penitentiary Academies, consisting of representatives from Costa Rica, Italy and Uruguay was elected. The RAP agreed to promote the creation of an educational platform for officials at the 17 institutions of both continents in the coming months, establishing a common diploma and specific qualifications. They will harness the resources and knowledge of all members to give access to better content for a humane, safe, efficient prison administration at the service of society.
It was also decided to set up a pool of trainers and researchers to strengthen the schools in their leading role in public doctrine and prison reforms.