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:

1. effective prison management,

2. the provision of healthcare in prisons and

3. 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.