OSCE Centre supports training for social workers of Kyrgyzstan’s penitentiary institutions

BISHKEK, 30 September 2016 – Some 16 social workers of penitentiary institutions across Kyrgyzstan will complete a two-week capacity-building training course tomorrow, which is organized by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek and the Kyrgyz State Service for Execution of Punishment (SSEP). 

The training course focuses on social work with prisoners and their social rehabilitation and is conducted by the trainers from national universities and SSEP trainers using up-to-date techniques and interactive teaching.

“The OSCE Centre supports the policy of the Kyrgyz State Service for Execution of Punishment in improving their professional skills in accordance with international standards on the treatment of prisoners,” said Silvia Pogolsa, acting head of the Human Dimension at the OSCE Centre.

Nazira Osmonova, Head of the SSEP Training Centre said that “this knowledge will serve the participants in successfully accomplishing their everyday tasks.”

The training course is being conducted at the SSEP Training Centre, which was established with the OSCE Centre’s support in 2010.

The course was held as part of an OSCE project on supporting the implementation of the National Strategy on the Development of Penitentiary System “Umut-2”, which addresses the human rights situation and safety in penitentiary establishments by supporting the capacity building of prison staff and the modernization of the penitentiary system.