Further Support to the penitentiary reform in Azerbaijan

This 24-month project is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe in cooperation with the main project partners, namely the Penitentiary Service and the Main Medical Department of the Ministry of Justice of Azerbaijan and other national stakeholders interested in penitentiary reform.

With this Joint Project the Council of Europe will assist the Azerbaijani authorities in the process of enhancing human rights protection of sentenced persons in Azerbaijan in line with the Council of Europe standards, in particular those of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT).

The JP SPERA-2 focuses on three areas:

effective prison management,
the provision of healthcare in prisons and
the reintegration of prisoners in line with European standards and best practices. This component involves the participation of civil society actors.

The JP SPERA-2 has an overall project budget of EUR 773 940 co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.

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Back Azerbaijan: a new tool for more humane and individualised prison management

@ Council of Europe

The Council of Europe continues to support the Azerbaijani prison system by improving Prison management and introducing contemporary approaches in line with the best European practices.

On 22 June 2021, a Working Group reviewed the consolidated Risk and Needs Assessment (RNA) Tool developed by the Council of Europe international consultant. The tool aims to strengthen the Azerbaijani penitentiary staff's capacity and develop practical skills on individual sentence and pre-release planning for sentenced offenders.

Eleven participants representing the Penitentiary Services of the Ministry of Justice, the pilot prisons Nos. 1, 4 and 16, the European Union and the Council of Europe discussed the importance of a more humane and individualised approach in prison management to contributing to graduated reintegration: a smooth transition from prison to community.

This online Working Group meeting was organised within the EU/CoE Joint Project "Support to the Penitentiary Reform in Azerbaijan" (JP SPERA-2), which is designed to promote effective prison management, health care in prisons and assist the reintegration of ex-offenders.

Azerbaijan 24 June 2021