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:
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effective prison management,
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the provision of healthcare in prisons and
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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.
Project documentation
Useful information
SPERA 2: FINAL EVENT
The final Steering Committee meeting of the EU and CoE Joint Project “Further Support to the Penitentiary Reform in Azerbaijan” took place on 28 October 2021. The meeting brought together 31 participants, including representatives from the national counterparts – the Ministry of Foreign Affairs...
Azerbaijan: second workshop on prison mental health care
Eighteen medical and non-medical staff (psychologists, prison doctors, teaching staff, etc.) from Baku pilot prisons Nos. 1, 4 and 16 attended an online workshop on mental health care organised on 6 October 2021. The participants of the workshop tackled issues related to self-harm and suicide in...
Work on rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders in Sheki
The Council of Europe Office in Baku continues assisting the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders in Azerbaijan. From 28 to 31 July 2021, the project team visited Sheki to assess the status of implementation of the two grants awarded to Uluchay Social-Economic Innovation Centre for: a...
Medical and non-medical prison staff in Azerbaijan improve knowledge on mental heath care
On 23 July 2021, medical and non-medical staff of pilot prisons Nos. 1, 4 and 16 (from Baku, Azerbaijan) improved their knowledge on mental health care for prisoners in the context of a one-day online workshop. Representatives of the main medical department of the Ministry of Justice and the...
Azerbaijan: a new tool for more humane and individualised prison management
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...
Azerbaijan: training of trainers for better protection of prisoners' rights
A group of 11 senior managers of the Azerbaijani penitentiary system from the Justice Academy, the Penitentiary Service, the Main Medical Department and pilot prisons Nos. 1, 4 and 16 increased their capacities and skills in line with European standards and thus became trainers who will cascade...
Specialised educational programme for prison managers in Azerbaijan
The Council of Europe continues supporting the Azerbaijani prison system by aligning its legislative and regulatory framework with European standards. Based on a review of the existing prison staff training curricula conducted in February 2020, an online meeting was held with national...
New Mental Screening Tool for the Azerbaijani Prisons
The Council of Europe continues supporting the Azerbaijani prison system by providing guidance and recommendations to the prison medical staff. A new mental health screening tool was developed in February-March 2021. Based on the most prominent international research and evidence-based practice,...
Azerbaijan - draft Code of Ethics for Prison Staff is ready for adoption
The Council of Europe continues supporting the Azerbaijani prison system by aligning its legislative and regulatory framework with European standards. On 16 March 2021, the Working Group finalised the drafting of a Code of Ethics for prison staff in Azerbaijan. Within the ongoing penitentiary...
Call for tenders
“Further Support to Penitentiary Reform in Azerbaijan 2” (JP SPERA-2) The Council of Europe is launching a call for the provision of consultancy services in the area of prison management and provision of health care (including mental health care), in the framework of the EU and CoE Joint Project...
Dynamic Security practices introduced in the Azerbaijani prisons
On 18- 19 and 21-22 January 2021, two online coaching sessions on Dynamic Security were organised for managers of high (No. 1) and general security (Nos. 4 and 16) regime prisons in Azerbaijan. The participants improved their professional competency and skills in theoretical and practical aspects...
Working Group meeting on the Azerbaijani draft Code of Ethics for Prison Staff
The Council of Europe continues supporting the Azerbaijani prison system through aligning the legislative and regulatory framework with European standards. On 8 September 2020, a draft Code of Ethics for Prison Staff in Azerbaijan was examined with the national partners and international...
Support to the Azerbaijani prison system to combat the COVID-19 pandemic continues
The Council of Europe continues assisting its member States in responding to the emergency of COVID-19 pandemic and to the challenges for the authorities in providing safe environment for prisoners and staff working in prisons. While quarantine regime continues in Azerbaijan, the Council of...
SPERA 2: First Steering Committee Meeting
The first Steering Committee Meeting of the EU and CoE Joint Project “Further Support to the Penitentiary Reform in Azerbaijan” (SPERA 2) took place online on 16 July 2020. The meeting brought together 23 participants including representatives from the national counterparts – the Ministry of...
Support to the Azerbaijani prison system to combat the COVID-19 pandemic
The Council of Europe continues assisting its member states in responding to the emergency of COVID-19 crisis and to the need of providing support to inmates and prison staff. On 25 June 2020, Council of Europe donated the necessary protective equipment to the Penitentiary Service and Main...
Preparation of a new Code of Ethics for prison staff in Azerbaijan
The Council of Europe continues supporting the Azerbaijani prison system through aligning the relevant legislative and regulatory framework with the European standards. In order to develop a new Code of Ethics for the Azerbaijani prison staff, a comprehensive review of the domestic legislative...
NGOs will provide psycho-social support and legal aid to ex-offenders in Azerbaijan
On 11 May 2020, a seminar was organised for the Azerbaijani NGOs that received grants to implement reintegration programmes in order to support released prisoners. The seminar raised the participants’ capacity as regards the provision of legal aid to the ex-offenders to address legal issues upon...
NGOs will support rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders in Azerbaijan
On 6 May 2020, a seminar was organised for the Azerbaijani NGOs that received grants to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders. The participants discussed the modalities and practical challenges of the organisation of vocational training and provision of business mentoring...
Training on prison healthcare
On 5-6 March 2020, medical and non-medical personnel of pilot prisons Nos. 1, 4, 16 and Juvenile Justice Correctional Institution underwent the training on quality health-care service delivery to victims of ill-treatment. During the intensive two-day training, the participants refreshed their...
Reviewed Training Curricula for Prison Staff in Azerbaijan
On 27-28 February 2020, Council of Europe consultants met with the representatives of the Penitentiary Service, Penitentiary Service Training Centre, WHO Collaborating Centre on prevention and control of tuberculosis in Penitentiary System under Specialised Treatment İnstitution of the Main...
Call for proposals - UPDATE
Further Support to the Penitentiary reform in Azerbaijan – 2 (SPERA 2) The Council of Europe launches a call for proposals on reintegration and rehabilitation of prisoners in Azerbaijan in the framework of the European Union - Council of Europe Joint Project “Further Support to the Penitentiary...
Call for proposals - UPDATE
Further Support to the Penitentiary reform in Azerbaijan – 2 (SPERA 2) The following call for proposals has been published on the Website of the Council of Europe office in Baku (Azerbaijan) : call for proposals Deadline for sending applications: 1 March 2020 Call for proposal Grant Award...
Revised Action Plans on prison management and prison healthcare presented in Azerbaijan
Meetings to update the Azerbaijani Action Plans on prison management and prison healthcare, adopted in 2017, were held in Baku, on 18-19 February 2020. Council of Europe consultants and representatives of the Penitentiary Service, the pilot prisons and the Main Medical Department of the Ministry...
“Further Support to the Penitentiary Reform in Azerbaijan–2” project launched in Azerbaijan
The Council of Europe organised a conference in Baku to launch a new CoE-EU Joint Programme entitled “Further Support to the Penitentiary Reform in Azerbaijan–2” (SPERA 2). This 24-month Project is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe...
European Prison Rules
CPDL Highlights
