At the Medium Security Prisons, Nsawam, a moving ceremony on October 3, 2025 marked a milestone in Ghana’s correctional health and rehabilitation story. Two inmates (Mr Agyei and Mr Asare Dankyi), who have maintained sobriety for more than a decade under the Addiction Treatment, Rehabilitation and Recovery Programme (ATRR) of the Ghana Prisons Service, were each presented with Citations of Honour as “Dangana Ambassadors in Recovery.”
The event, graced by Expert User Consultant/Founder of Dangana Foundation, Nashiru Momori, Senior Prison Administrators, Rev. Fr Twumasi-Addiction Treatment Expert and key partners from organisations including Dangana Foundation, Besstel Foundation, Hopeful Way Rehabilitation Center, Humanity First Ghana and S.T.A.R.T Forensics, celebrated two remarkable men who turned their incarceration into an opportunity for renewal. Their recovery journey, nurtured through the ATRR’s structured multidisciplinary approach, stands as a living testament that healing, transformation, and hope can thrive even behind bars. This was the second cohort of Ambassadors churned out through such an innovative programme.
The ATRR Programme, spearheaded by the Ghana Prisons, addresses one of the most complex challenges in corrections—addiction and its behavioural counterparts. Addiction, whether chemical or behavioural, often underlies criminal behaviour and repeat offending. Research across Africa shows that a significant proportion of inmates are incarcerated for offenses linked to substance use, gambling, and other behavioural disorders.
A study by Acheampong et al., using forensic hair analysis, found the presence of cannabis, benzodiazepines, and opiates among inmates in prisons—evidence that despite strict controls, it raises concerns of the link of substance use and causation of crime as well as rehabilitation in custodial settings. This reinforces the urgent need for structured treatment programmes like ATRR that go beyond punishment to address the medical, social and psychological roots of addiction.
At the heart of the programme lies a multidisciplinary model that blends medical, psychological, and social interventions. The Prison Diagnostic System assess and provides classification to newly admitted inmates and make the needed referrals. The Forensic Medical team including doctors, psychiatric nurses provides evaluation through testing, and treatment. Expert User consultants, counsellors and psychologists provide counselling and behavioural therapy; while social workers reconnect inmates with family and community support through the restorative justice pathway. The model also integrates faith-based and peer mentorship components, allowing inmates to draw strength from spiritual reflection and mutual encouragement.
What makes the ATRR programme distinct is its focus on both chemical and behavioral addictions—ranging from drugs and alcohol to gambling, anger, pornography etc. It incorporates recovery models- Practical and Realistic Approach to Recovery in Wellness (PRARW) and the Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP), which empowers participants to take ownership of their recovery through self-awareness, relapse prevention, and personal accountability.
One of the honorees, reflecting on his journey, shared: “Before the programme, I thought addiction was my choice. The ATRR helped me understand it as a medical condition—and today, I am 12 years sober and free.”
The ceremony not only recognised personal achievement but also highlighted the transformative impact of rehabilitation-focused corrections. Addiction treatment programmes, when effectively implemented, significantly reduce recidivism, enhance mental health, and ease reintegration after release. Research by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) corroborates this, noting that prisons with structured addiction treatment experience improved inmate behavior and reduced reoffending.
According to C/Supt. Dr. Lawrence. Kofi Acheampong, a Forensic Medical Scientist and Security Expert, one of the programme’s lead, the ATRR embodies “a restorative justice model that gives inmates the chance to rebuild, reconcile, and return as better citizens.”
Despite challenges such as overcrowding, stigma, and limited resources, the ATRR programme continues to thrive—supported by national and international partners. The passage of the Narcotics Control Commission Act (2023), which emphasizes treatment over punishment, provides a progressive policy framework for expanding the initiative.
The ceremony captured a profound truth: recovery is possible, even in confinement. The two Dangana Ambassadors in Recovery now stand as living proof that prisons can be places not only of punishment but also of transformation.
As Ghana deepens its correctional health reforms, the ATRR programme remains a beacon of hope—showing that with compassion, science, and collaboration, lives once defined by addiction can become testimonies of strength, dignity, and redemption.
The writer is a Forensic Medical Scientist and Security Expert
BY C/SUPT DR LAWRENCE KOFI ACHEAMPONG
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