SPERU - Further Support to the Penitentiary Reform in Ukraine

This project was co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe in co-operation with the main partners, namely the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, the State Executive Service and its interregional branches, the Parliamentary Assembly, the Supreme Court of Ukraine, the General Prosecutor Office, the Ombudsmen Office and Civil Society organisations and other relevant national stakeholders interested in penitentiary reform in Ukraine.

Thanks to this project, Ukrainian authorities have been assisted in the promotion of Human rights in the management of prisons as well as in the further development of a rehabilitative approach to offenders in line with the Council of Europe standards, in particular those of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture an Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT), and taking into account the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights.

The Joint Programme (JP) SPERU achieved the following outcomes:

enhancement of Justice system actors’ awareness to proceed with the penitentiary reform based on the Council of Europe standards
partnerships between the justice system, community services and civil society are facilitated to enhance resocialization and reintegration of prisoners
justice system capacity is enhanced to develop and implement healthcare strategy in prisons

Further support to the reforms in the field of prison and the protection of prisoners’ rights is part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2021.

The project implementation started in July 2019 and ended bewteen October 2021 and April 2022.

Project documentation

Useful information

PROJECT NEWS

Back JP SPERU: Second Steering Committee Meeting

@ Council of Europe

The Second Steering Committee meeting of the EU and CoE Joint Project "Support to Prison Reform in Ukraine – JP SPERU" took place online on 10 September 2020. It was organised together with two other components of the Joint Programme between the EU and CoE "European Union and Council of Europe working together to strengthening human rights in Ukraine" covering freedom of media and strengthening the Ombudsperson's capacity to protect human rights.

The meeting brought together members of the Steering Committee including those from the Ministry of Justice, Verkhovna Rada, Department of the Execution of the Criminal Sanctions, Ombudsperson, as well as representatives of the European Union and the Council of Europe.

The Steering Committee made an assessment of the progress, discussed risks and provided strategic guidance and advice to maximise projects' impact.

The SPERU team presented the results achieved, making particular emphasis on COVID-19 response to ensure continuity of the project activities.

The main beneficiaries including the MoJ, the Criminal Executive Directorate and the Bila Tserkva Penitentiary staff Training Centre, expressed gratitude to the CoE and the SPERU project for the initiatives undertaken in sphere of the prison reform implementation and their readiness to continued cooperation.

Co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe, JP SPERU is designed to promote human rights compliant management of prisons, including better alignment of prison healthcare provisions with European standards.

Ukraine 11 September 2020