Her Ladyship Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe (JA) has announced a significant reduction in Ghana’s remand prisoner population, attributing the achievement to the sustained implementation of the Justice for All Programme (JFAP).
Speaking at the end of an in-prison Justice for All Court Sitting held at the Kumasi Central Prisons on Friday, December 20, 2025, Justice Asare-Botwe revealed that as of December 18, 2025, remand prisoners constituted 12.47 per cent of the total prison population, a sharp decline from 33 per cent recorded at the inception of the programme in 2007.
She acknowledged the immense contributions of past Chief Justices and the current Chief Justice, His Lordship Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, for sustaining the programme over the years. She also commended judges, staff of the Judicial Service, members of the National Steering Committee of the Justice for All Programme, and other criminal justice stakeholders for their collective efforts in making the initiative successful.
Justice Asare-Botwe explained that the programme was introduced to address prolonged pre-trial detention, which violates Article 14(4) of the 1992 Constitution. The Article mandates that a person arrested or detained must be tried within a reasonable time or released, either unconditionally or on reasonable bail terms.
According to her, the absence of a clear definition of what constitutes “reasonable time,” coupled with institutional challenges, had previously resulted in detainees spending excessive periods in custody without trial—sometimes even longer than the sentence the offence would attract upon conviction.
She recalled that prior to the introduction of the Justice for All Programme, prison overcrowding was severe, with as many as 55 inmates confined in cells designed for only 12.
These conditions, she noted, attracted international condemnation, including a 2014 indictment of Ghana by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, Juan Méndez, for falling below the UN Minimum Standard Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules).
Justice Asare-Botwe disclosed that records from the Ghana Prisons Service showed that as of December 2018, the total prison population stood at 14,910, far exceeding the authorised national capacity of 9,875, representing an overcrowding rate of 51 per cent.
She attributed the recent improvements to effective collaboration among criminal justice institutions, including the Judiciary, law enforcement agencies such as the Police and EOCO, the Office of the Attorney-General, the Legal Aid Authority, and civil society organisations, particularly the POS Foundation, which facilitates the Justice for All Programme.
She noted that the Judiciary has intensified capacity-building programmes to ensure strict adherence by judges to Section 96 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1960 (Act 30), as amended, especially on bail considerations and relevant Supreme Court decisions, including the Martin Kpebu v Attorney-General cases.
Judges, she added, have also been encouraged to conduct trials expeditiously.
Justice Asare-Botwe urged the media and civil society organisations to project the current realities of Ghana’s criminal justice system and refrain from using outdated data that may misrepresent progress made in addressing remand issues.
Presenting cumulative statistics from Justice for All sittings since 2007, she revealed that out of 4,843 inmates reviewed, 862 (17.8%) were discharged, 1,743 (35.99%) were granted bail, 183 (3.78%) were convicted, 39 (0.81%) were referred for psychiatric treatment, while 2,016 (41.63%) applications were dismissed.
For the Kumasi Central Prisons sitting, a total of 41 pre-trial cases were presented. Out of these, 15 inmates were granted bail, four were discharged, one was referred for psychiatric treatment, three cases were dismissed or struck out, nine inmates were convicted and imprisoned, while 12 bail applications were refused.
Justice Asare-Botwe emphasized that the Justice for All Programme continues to bring relief to vulnerable remand inmates who lack legal representation and risk prolonged incarceration without trial.
She appealed to private legal practitioners to offer pro bono services to persons in conflict with the law.
She further disclosed that the Judiciary is committed to proposing pragmatic reforms to improve jury and criminal trials, including supporting the operationalisation of Section 162(A) of Act 1079 on plea bargaining, which she believes will further reduce prison overcrowding.
The Justice of the Court of Appeal also admonished investigators, particularly officers of the Criminal Investigations Department, to be diligent in their work and avoid leaving remand inmates to languish in custody for months or years.
She concluded by thanking the Chief Justice for the opportunity to serve and expressed satisfaction that inmates discharged or granted bail during the sitting would reunite with their families after prolonged detention.
FROM David Afum, Kumasi