DCS in Numbers

During the year under review, the Department had a total inmate population 162 875 with approved bed space of 118 572. The South African Constitution explicitly provides inmates (sentenced and unsentenced) with the right to adequate accommodation linked to human dignity however the overcrowding of correctional facilities is still a prevalent challenge to the Department.

The total number of inmates as at 31 March 2019 was 162 875 against the approved bedspace of 118 572 of the inmate population, unsentenced inmates constituted 29.30% while the sentenced offenders were 70.70%. Males were almost 97% while females were less than 3%. The regions with the highest number of inmates were Gauteng (22.66%), Western Cape (18.22%), KwaZulu-Natal (16.69%) and LMN 15.76%). The regions with the lowest number of inmates were Eastern Cape (12.94%) and Free State and Northern Cape (13.71%). The continuous growth in the offender populations creates challenges, pressures and demands in the corrections operating environment.

The following graph reflects the inmate population from 2014/15 to 2018/19 financial years

The three regions with the highest number of Remand Detainees were Western Cape, Gauteng and Limpopo/Mpumalanga/North West. The regions with the lowest number of Remand Detainees were Free State/Northern Cape, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. Below are trends which describe the changes in the demographics of the inmate population from 2014/15 to 2018/19

The tables above indicate that of the 47 526 RDs that were detained on 31 March 2019, a total of 0.13% (64) made up of children RDs. The regions with the highest number of RD children were KwaZulu-Natal followed by Eastern Cape, Free State and Northern Cape. The regions with the lowest number of RD children were Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West and Gauteng.