Timehri Prison tilapia hatchery nets nearly 90 pounds

…as Mazaruni inmates harvest over 200 pounds of produce

With agriculture one of the main rehabilitation programmes offered by the Guyana Prison Service (GPS), the GPS continues to strengthen its agricultural rehabilitation programme with recent harvests at the Timehri and Mazaruni prisons highlighting growing progress toward food self-sufficiency and inmate skill development.
At the Timehri Prison, the tilapia hatchery recorded its first harvest for 2026, producing nearly 90 pounds of red tilapia on Wednesday, January 14. The initiative, led by prison staff and female inmates, provides an additional source of protein for the prison population while equipping inmates with practical aquaculture skills.
Director of Prisons, Nicklon Elliot, said the project reflects the GPS’s ongoing commitment to rehabilitation through skills training and sustainable food production. He noted that the hatchery contributes to reduced operational costs while supporting the long-term goal of self-sufficiency within correctional facilities.
The tilapia project forms part of a broader range of agricultural initiatives across the prison system, including vegetable cultivation and poultry farming.

Mazaruni prison harvests
Meanwhile, inmates at the Mazaruni Prison harvested more than 200 pounds of vegetables and fruits on the same day, including pak choi, cucumber, ochro, and five-finger (carambola). The harvest was produced on the prison farm under the GPS’s agricultural rehabilitation programme. Officer-in-Charge of the Mazaruni Prison, Superintendent of Prisons Carlton Cameron, said the farming operation has remained productive despite recent adverse weather conditions.
Director Elliot added that the Prison Service’s agriculture programme aims to create a sustainable food supply while providing inmates with valuable skills in farming and animal husbandry that can support reintegration after release. Agricultural production is currently underway at the New Amsterdam, Mazaruni, Lusignan, and Timehri prisons as part of the Prison Service’s nationwide self-sufficiency strategy. In January of 2025, the Prison Service had announced plans to revive its long-standing agriculture programme, which in previous years produced significant quantities of crops and livestock. The initiative was temporarily halted in late 2024 due to security concerns, but following a comprehensive review and the strengthening of Standard Operational Procedures, the programme has been reintroduced. The new guidelines are designed to improve supervision of inmates working on prison farms and prevent future breaches. Director of Prisons Nicklon Elliot, speaking at a meeting with agriculture officers on January 23 2025, underscored that all prison farmlands will now be fully utilised for large-scale farming. In addition to crop cultivation and harvesting, poultry rearing is also being expanded as part of the programme. Already, the GPS has procured thousands of broilers and layers for poultry operations at Lusignan and Mazaruni Prisons.

Pork and tilapia production will also be prioritised, alongside the cultivation of high-demand crops such as pepper, fine-leaf thyme, and broad-leaf thyme. The Timehri harvest of bora and cucumbers is the latest step in rolling out this larger strategy.
To support the expansion, the 2025 national budget provided for the acquisition of new equipment, including two tractors with trailers and ploughs, as well as an excavator to aid with land preparation and drainage works. Farming operations are expected to continue at Mazaruni, Lusignan, and Timehri prisons.