Senegal’s National Assembly on Wednesday adopted Bill No. 39/2026 on prison health care, with 130 votes in favour, including 18 by proxy, during a plenary session.
The legislation, adopted by Senegal’s National Assembly, aims to strengthen access to health care and protect the fundamental rights of people deprived of their liberty by providing a specific legal framework for their health care.
Introduced by MPs Khady Sarr, Anta Dia, Cheikh Faye and Mamadou Lamine Diaité, the bill was examined by a joint committee bringing together the Committee on Health, Population, Social Affairs and National Solidarity and the Committee on Laws, Decentralisation, Labour and Human Rights.
According to the explanatory memorandum presented during consideration of the bill, detention conditions, particularly overcrowding, cramped conditions and inadequate medical resources in some facilities, can expose prisoners to significant health risks.
The new law enshrines the principles of continuity of care and non-discrimination, the professional independence of medical personnel, and improved coordination among the ministries concerned.
It also provides for mechanisms to monitor, follow up and protect the rights of sick prisoners, while leaving the competent authorities to determine arrangements for the organisation, staffing and equipment of the services concerned.
During consideration of the bill, MPs stressed the need to ensure the effective exercise of the right to health in prisons. They raised issues including access to medicines, the availability of doctors, medical evacuations, diagnosis and pain management.
The independence of medical personnel working in prisons was also raised, along with the need for closer cooperation between health services and the prison administration.
Lawmakers also called for a structured system to collect and report health data on prisoners in order to better document epidemiological issues and improve public health policies.
Particular attention will also have to be paid to prisoners’ mental health and their inclusion in national screening campaigns for non-communicable diseases.
The bill also provides for improved coordination between the justice and health ministers, notably through agreements between public health facilities and prisons.
MPs also raised, in the longer term, the possibility of establishing a hospital facility specifically dedicated to providing care to prisoners.
The bill is consistent with Senegal’s international and regional human rights commitments, notably the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, known as the “Nelson Mandela Rules”, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
The report states that, to cover the additional public expenditure arising from implementation of the law, compensatory revenue will be provided through an additional 0.2 percent excise levy, based on the tax bases provided for under the General Tax Code, without changing existing tax rates.
The adoption of the law comes as MPs also highlighted the challenges posed by prison overcrowding and poor detention conditions, stressing that improved health care contributes to protecting the dignity of people deprived of their liberty and supporting their rehabilitation and reintegration.
The bill was adopted after the consideration and approval of draft amendments proposed by the Government, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly.
TE/Sf/lb/as/APA