TCI Governor Nigel Dakin gushes over progress at Prison Farm

#TurksandCaicos, February 9, 2023 – Some good news linked to “His Majesty’s Prison Grand Turk”. It’s now a resource, in and of itself, for providing an educative experience for children – while also helping rehabilitate those incarcerated there.

The Prison Farm has of course been long established and indeed one of my previous close protection officers helped establish it some years ago.  It suffered damage in the recent hurricane but is back and fully operational and is now – in many ways – a model farm for TCI.

Drawing on this national resource it’s now reaching out to schools and the Prison has just hosted its third school visit. So what do the children get to see?

The farm has 400 chickens producing 800+ eggs per week which are sold to the local community along with goats and pigs that also find a local market.  There are rabbits (not for the pot) which are for petting by the children and the farm grows peppers, carrots, sweet potatoes, sugar cane, cabbages, callaloo, sweetcorn, tomatoes, onions, okra, melons and a range of herbs.

The farm employs up to 8 prisoners and has a farm manager and two civilian workers. This financial year the farm generated over $11,000 in revenue which was paid to the Treasury. In addition the produce supports the prison kitchen making savings to the prison budget.

The children learn how vegetables grow, seed to plate, and what vegetables make up well know foods (coleslaw for instance). They also learn about animal welfare and how they live and are cared for. It’s a great thing..

The new Prison Superintendent, who is as keen on it as his predecessor, tells me that Mr Lyons rendition of “Old McDonalds Farm” is priceless. The song strings together the tour, each section of the tour adding a new verse; the children love it.  This is part of a program the Ministry are developing to connect the Prison to the community. Mandy and myself have enjoyed helping the Prison on this journey in other ways.

Why. Because todays prisoner is self-evidently tomorrows neighbour – and HMP Grand Turk needs to be a place where those convicted are not only incarcerated but where they can make a positive change in their lives. This looks like a step in the right direction.