How is Unemployment increasing Prison Admissions?

Unemployment playing a significant role in high number of new prison admissions

The latest statistics on Prisons and discharges for the 1st quarter of 2023 released by the Director-General of Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT), Taguma Mahonde, have revealed that unemployment is a major factor contributing to the high number of new prisoners admitted into the country’s prisons in the first quarter of 2023.

According to the report, the major cause of crimes such as theft, burglary, and robbery among the youth aged between 18 to 30 is unemployment.

Furthermore, the report revealed that 59.6% of the new prisoners were unemployed. This is a significant difference from those who were employed or self-employed. The report also showed that there were differences in unemployment rates between male and female prisoners, with 59.1 percent of men being unemployed, while women were at 66.2%.

Crime for Survival

Mahonde expressed concern over these findings, saying that “Most of the new prisoners were unemployed. People who have no means of support are resorting to crime to survive, and this is leading to a high number of new prison admissions.”

The report also showed the types of crimes that led to the imprisonment of the new prisoners. Theft, assaults, burglary, robbery (other), and domestic violence were the most common. However, there were significant differences in the types of crimes committed by male and female prisoners.

More than a quarter, 28.1%, of the crimes that led to the imprisonment of male prisoners aged 60 years and above were rape charges. This is a concerning finding as sexual offenses are often difficult to prove and can have a traumatic impact on the victims.

Unemployed Man

Unemployed male prisoners were mostly admitted for theft (17.9%), assault (16.1%), and burglary (13.0%). Meanwhile, unemployed female prisoners were mostly admitted for theft (24.3%) and drug-related offenses (16.6%).

In addition the report also indicated an increase in Zimbabwe’s Prison Population in the First Quarter 2023. Zimbabwe had a total prison population of 23,982 at the end of the first quarter. This represented an increase of 641 prisoners, accounting for a 2.7% rise compared to the previous quarter.

Lastly, the national imprisonment rate stood at 158 per 100,000 people, with males having a significantly higher rate of 320 per 100,000 people compared to females at eight per 100,000 people.