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EPPiSM Baner

No. 4/2025/76

Artykuły

Effectiveness of the Execution of Vocational Education for Convicts in Georgia

Published: 2025-12-30

Abstract

Vocational education is the most important segment of the educational system. It is an opportunity to equire a profession at any age, completely for free and become a professional. In recent years, vocational education has become increasingly popular and its
promotion has become one of the key elements for overcoming unemployment and fostering the economic development of the country. Development of the vocational education is one of the main important priorities of any state, experts and scholars of the
educational sphere do not even debate above the mentioned. Vocational education and its availability gain even more importance within the penitentiary system, as it is one of the main tools for resocialization and reintegration of the inmates. Vocational education in the penitentiary system is not only the part of sentence-serving process but a useful instrument as well. However, in order for the convicts to continue their education freely without any complications and get employed upon their release from the penitentiary system, it is essential that the vocational education received in the mentioned system be integrated with the educational system of the country and its vocational training programs. In general, obtaining education in the penitentiary establishments is characterized with specific features, and for this reason, it is very important to consider the way the administration of the penitentiary system provides the essential, accessible resources and appropriate services for the inmates’ vocational education.
It should be noted that in the penitentiary system of Georgia, the provision of vocational training programs for convicts is ensured by two structural unites under its authority. One is the Department of the Resocialization and Rehabilitation of the Convicts and the
other is the Vocational Education and Training Centre for Inmates (VETCI). Taking this into account, when the authority of two structural units in the agency includes the real ization of the right to vocational education for convicts, it is important to assess how effectively the penitentiary system fulfills its duty in this direction. More specifically, when the responsibility for the effective implementation of vocational education is divided between two governing bodies, it is crucial to determine how coordinated and qualitatively the process of vocational training/retraining of convicts is carried out. Is there an overlap of functions or inappropriate use of financial and organizational resources? Additionally, it is important to analyze where the line of responsibility lies between these two agencies and whose competence it is to determine the need for vocational programs for convicts, and then their implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. How effective is the current mechanism for implementing vocational education for prisoners in the penitentiary system? Does it help or hinder the process of rehabilitation for convicts? To study these issues, the information requested from the Department of Resocialization-Rehabilitation of Convicts and Vocational Education and Training Centre for Inmates will be analyzed against both national legal norms and international standards, as well as best practices from foreign countries. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the administrative mechanism for the execution of vocational education for convicts and to highlight the problems that require complex adjustments in the penitentiary system in this regard. In line with this goal, using the requested information, existing experience, and inductive and deductive methods, recommendations will be developed to contribute to the effective implementation of vocational education for convicts in Georgia.

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