He said greater focus on community corrections was aimed at reducing the prison population and improve rehabilitation of those convicted of non-serious offences.

“In the future, by 2030, two-thirds of convicted prisoners should undergo community corrections. Correctional facilities are meant for those involved in serious crimes,” Nordin told Bernama in an interview in New Delhi.

According to Nordin, the recidivism rate among former inmates who did not have rehabilitation opportunities outside the prison was at 15% compared with just 0.38% for those who underwent community corrections.

“Our future focus is more on community corrections so that we can reduce recidivism,” he said.

He added that in order to protect the communities better, the idea should be to transform from retributive to restorative justice.

The prisons department’s rehabilitation and resettlement initiatives include job attachment schemes in which companies offer employment and accommodation to eligible inmates under the supervision of prison officials.

He said that at present, about 5,000 prisoners are enrolled in job schemes with various companies.

“We can reach 10,000 inmates by 2023. The government will be able to cut its monthly expenditure by RM500 per inmate,” Nordin said.

On healthcare facilities for prisoners, he said the basic services are almost similar to those available outside but the prisons department has been looking into ways to improve access to specialist medical care.