Otafiire made the remarks while commissioning the new garment workshop machinery at Kitalya Mini Max Prison on Monday. According to the commissioner in charge of prison industries, Robert Munanura, the new equipment will be used to train inmates in the craft of tailoring, cloth making and stitching of all staff and prisoners’ uniforms.
Munanura said that the garment machinery is a springboard into the competitive, modern mass production of quality garments where they shall be able to make their own uniforms and progressively venture into commercial enterprise and make garments for other institutions.
He adds that the revitalization of the prisons industries will enable UPS to attain self-financing and sufficiency through the sale of industrial products to the government and the community while providing practical skills to offenders to reduce recidivism.
Otafiire said that all the armed forces should assign the docket of making uniforms to Uganda Prisons because they have the manpower to cloth them. Currently, police uniforms are made by the Police Garment Factory on Jinja Road jointly with private suppliers although in December last year, the police garment factory was razed by a fire outbreak.
Otafiire is optimistic that after clothing security, the prisons facility can expand its capacity to serve other entities like the Uganda Wildlife Authority, Directorate of Immigration and private security service providers.
While congratulating the prisons for the foresight for acquiring a machine that will simplify their work, the minister asked them to start making shoes, boots and stockings for prison staff and other sister agencies. He also asked prisons to train trainers to increase capacity to produce and increase their non-tax revenue base.
Otafiire asked the commissioner general of UPS, Dr Johnson Byabashaija to ensure that the correctional aspect of Uganda prisons is emphasized and actualized. Byabashaija, in his speech commended President Museveni for ensuring that Uganda Prisons have a budget to revive its own industries and asked the minister to support him to raise their budget with Shs 32 billion which they have requested to be spent over five years to establish the required capacity in garment making and agriculture among other establishments.
UPS spokesperson Frank Baine said it would require Uganda Prisons to bid in order to take over the job of making uniforms for the various government agencies, actualized through a number of administrative decisions.