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IDOSR JOURNAL OF CURRENT ISSUES IN SOCIAL SCIENCES 10(1): 19-23, 2024.
https://doi.org/10.59298/JCISS/2024/101.1923730

Exploring the use of Information System Management in

School of Mathematics and Computing, Kampala International University, Uganda

ABSTRACT
The article explores the prison management information system in Uganda prisons. The article revealed that the
management of prisons in Uganda is still poor due to the manual structure of the processes. However, the system
has the scope to be developed as a distributed application where each implementation of PMS in different
prisons can be connected and communicate with each other worldwide. In such a scenario a person sitting in
Uganda can access the data of different prisons in and outside Uganda. This will make the whole system highly
centralized as well as well connected. Most importantly, it will provide the end user who has the necessary
security clearance a single portal where he/she can access prison records from all major prisons in Uganda
where the PMS would be deployed thus making it a truly practical deployable application that can be used
in prisons all over Uganda and other countries.
Keywords: Automation, Database, ICT, Prison information management, Prison system

INTRODUCTION
The Uganda Prison Service was founded in 1896, to justice. The JLOS has outlined its mission as to
as a branch of the Kings African Rifle (KAR) and "enable all people in Uganda to live in a safe and
established in 1903 as an independent department. just society[2]. The laws for the organization,
The department was run by the Uganda Police administration, and functions of the UPS are
Force (UPF) and the training was done by soldiers regulated by the Parliament of Uganda to ensure
of KAR[1]. In 1907, the DEPOT Prison Training that the members of UPS are recruited from every
School was established at Luzira and run by the district of Uganda. The laws provide that the UPS
soldiers of the KAR as instructors. On the 26th of shall be nationalistic, patriotic, professional,
April 1950, the school was officially opened by His disciplined, competent, and productive; and its
Excellency (HE) Sir, John Harthon, then Governor members shall be citizens of the Republic of
and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. In Uganda of good character recruited from every
1917 an independent Prison department was district of Uganda[3]. The Prison Act stipulates
established from the Protectorate Police but still that every prison officer shall have all the powers,
the prison and police remained under joint protection, and privileges of a police officer;
command until 1938. The mission for UPS is to within the prison, while in charge of prisoners, and
provide safe, secure, and humane custody of to convey any person to or from prison
offenders while placing human rights at the centre premises. The Act provides that a prison officer
of their correctional programs. The UPS is shall apprehend any prisoner who may have
mandated under the Constitution of the Republic escaped from the prison or while being conveyed
of Uganda 1995 and the Prison Act 2006 to to or from prison[4]. The UPS like other
provide safe custody and rehabilitate offenders. organizations has many prison stations, which
The UPS is one of thirteen institutions that have accommodate prisoners being remanded,
been brought together under the Justice Law and sentenced, or confined for any other reasons. The
Order Sector (JLOS) wide approach to enhance prisoners may be removed from any prison to
planning and budgeting capacity to improve access another, when sentenced, or on a temporal basis

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due to other reasons. Therefore, prison officers low hence, leading to a low crime rate. The prison
are subjected to take control of any prisoner in stations could receive a smaller number of
their custody until otherwise released. For that prisoners therefore; they were able to maintain
reason, the UPS is supposed to keep efficient and manual records effectively. The population growth
up-to-date records of the prisoners under their in the late 1980s led to a high crime rate resulting
custody to enable them to keep track of proper in a dramatic increase of manual managed
details for each prisoner[5]. Efficient records volumes of records kept for a longer period of
management is now a necessity in all time, thus insufficient to rely on individual
institutions for complimentary with legal and personal memory about the past initiative
regulatory obligations. It supports the core procedures[8].
functions and provides the basis for effective and The day a sentence is passed to a person is the day
accountable administration. The system ensures he/ she becomes a prisoner even before getting to
sound decisions; necessary trace, scrutiny, and the fore walls of the prison yards. Immediately the
justification of the rationale for those decisions are sentence is passed, the prison officers become the
made based on accurate and up-to-date middlemen between the government and the
information[6]. Therefore, the prison prisoners. The prisoner on his/her part does
management is mandated to keep perfect anything within his or her limit to see that he or
records/details of prisoners such that they can she does not spend a minute beyond the sentence
track their identity, the number of prisoners in given while the government cannot do away with
custody, offenses committed, and their status. The the prisoner until every bit of the jail term or
UPS is supposed to keep records of their officers otherwise is completely secured[9]. But it has
stationed in any prison to track the number of been tedious for families and loved ones to easily
prison staff under their command and their full trace the records of the inmates. This necessitated
details[7]. It is noted that during the the present study that explores the management of
establishment of the UPS, the population was very information systems in Uganda Prisons.
The Concept of Information Systems
The adoption of information technology (IT) in information systems must progress in line with
organizations is growing at a rapid pace. The use IT advancement without compromising the
of technology has evolved from the automation of existing strict government principles and
structured processes to truly revolutionary regulations set through acts and policies. The
systems because they introduce changes in revelation of systems that capture various
fundamental business procedures. Indeed, it is information, serves as important institutional
believed that more than being helped by memory and is central to efficient public service
computers, companies will live by them, shaping machinery. The management of court records
strategies and structures to fit new through electronic means has a great impact on
information[10]. In the words of Berisha- the government and citizens as a whole. It
Shaqiri[11], information system is the preserves the memory of a nation's civilization in
assortment of components that are mainly used for judicial matters. The tremendous increase in case
collection, processing, storing, and dispensing disposal rate after the electronic system
information to back up the important processes of implementation proves a great improvement and
decision-making and commanding or controlling excellent achievement in judicial service
the organization. Spielman et al.[12] noted that delivery[13]. Sabina Klanecek stressed that the
the explosion of sophisticated information and Ministry of Justice and Public Administration in
communication technologies (ICTs) creates new Slovenia explained how technology was used to
opportunities as well as challenges for the whole deal with vulnerable groups, in particular
service delivery systems; particularly in fulfilling children, during court proceedings. In her
the ever-increasing demand of citizens who have opinion, the introduced video conferencing
high levels of information technology (IT) literacy ensured avoidance of second or even third
and advanced knowledge and awareness 7 of their victimization of children[14].
rights. To remain competitive, government
Electronic Information Management Systems
The efficiency of service delivery sets the risks and costs of regulatory and legal non-
benchmark for public service excellence. An compliance, litigation, discovery, business
effective information management system inefficiency, and failure; organizations need to
guarantees the accountability and integrity of an remove the human element by automating
organisation that provides services to the public information management via technology[16].
at large and serves as a strategic resource for This transformation means removing freedom of
government administration[15]. To minimize the choice, enforcing electronic record creation,

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indexation, classification, and naming that lack electronic information management
conventions; creating and preserving meta-data, systems to aid their data capturing ability to
minimizing duplicate records by creating a effectively control crime; should have electronic
central information repository that also facilitates databases where the reported crimes with all
knowledge and content management, details can be recorded and stored regularly other
systematically archiving and tracking records and than the paper-based records that hinder their
amendments; applying retention schedules to efficiency. This information management system
purge redundant ones, but preserving their access can enable the police to draw accurate analytical
logs, audit trails, and meta-data[8]. The major statistics regarding the information about
issues in implementing electronic information in reported cases. Brits et al.[19] observed that
organizations are regarding access, security, and information systems help managers analyze
interoperability. Widiatmoko[17] urged that the business capabilities and levels of individuals in
use of electronic communications increases citizen the workforce problems, visualize complicated
participation in the public decision-making subjects, and develop new ventures and projects.
process. The use of information technology Rukanyangira and Mijjumbi[20] stated that an
improves the management of government, from information management system comprises
streamlining business processes to maintaining manpower, instruments, and processes to
electronic information and improving the flow accumulate, classify, examine, assess, and then
and integration of information. Blessed and dispense to the decision-makers within an
Diegmann[18] proposed that the police stations organization in a timely and accurate manner.
The Concept of Databases
Zadorozhny[21] defined computer databases as structure of the database is made up of linked tables
structured collections of records or data that are in the form of rows and columns used to store
stored in a computer system. The structure is organized information in an organization. A
archived by organizing data according to database database is an electronic filing system or a collection
relational models. The computer database relies of information organized in such a way that a
upon software called database management system computer program can quickly select desired pieces
(DBMS) to organize data storage. Database of data. Traditionally databases are organized by
management system relies on the database model fields, records, and files. A field is a single piece of
which tends to determine the query language that is information, a record is one complete set of fields
available to access the database. A typical data and a file is a collection of records[22].
Why use electronic databases?
Databases are the major sources of information, facilitate data management. An ever-increasing
therefore, increasingly being published only in corpus of heterogeneous digital materials such as
electronic formats. A single database may refer to a documents, pictures spreadsheets can be efficiently
variety of sources, including periodical articles, managed by the use of databases. Customized
books, government documents, industry reports, methods of inputting data for different contexts
papers at meetings, newspaper items, film and video allow diverse bodies of information to be captured.
recordings[23].Wilson et al.[24] argued that However, databases can be complex and the
databases can form a key part of information technical skills required to develop and maintain
management strategy to support researchers and them represent a barrier to theresearchers.
Prison management systems
An automated prison management system is the competitive speed which is important for
collection of registered cases for each prisoner prisoners[7]. To this end, a micro-computer-based
entering the prison for an automated release diary prison management system was developed to
generator. A good system for prison service should practically enable the prison staff and concerned
be automated, because it enhances the parties and render capability for the use of a
administration and experience to design, develop, computer for effective services. In this project,
and implement a prison management system for attention was based on an automated prison
prison defense and security[14]. The prison is a management system "a document-based system"
very large yard where prisoners, warders, and other that is used in many parts of the world (mostly in
prison staff reside. Researchers and prison staff like under-developed countries), including Uganda. In
any other human always need the latest technology light of the difficulties faced in the manual system,
in the field to reduce stress encountered in their there has been a constant stream of advice from both
fields. In developed countries of the world, people individuals and professionals calling for the
are already fighting over how prisoners can gain overhaul of the manual prison systems in the world
access to the internet in their cell rooms or their to IT-based systems. This can offer the best option
common rooms. This electronic technology offers and advantages to the prison institutions in

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evaluating the success and failures of Prisons. removed using the online prison management
Instructively, the management of prisons as well as system (PMS). PMS effectively stores all the
prison records is a vital aspect of national security information in neat prison profiles which have all
which becomes all the more important in the current the necessary information about a prisoner as well as
volatile security situation. Prison management in his/her fingerprint signature attached to the profile.
Uganda is still in a nascent stage using a manual ID numbers can be used as a search key to identify
system of files and folders to store and organize prison records by comparing them with external
prison records. This system is inefficient as well as databases that are found at crime scenes. All these
looking up of specific information is cumbersome improvements greatly reduce the time at which
and tedious. This greatly impedes the flow of specific information is delivered to concerned
Critical information. All these deficiencies are agencies.
CONCLUSION
Currently, the prison management system can only well as well connected. Most importantly, it will
be deployed for all prisons in Uganda. However, the provide the end user who has the necessary security
system has the scope to be developed as a clearance a single portal where he/she can access
distributed application where each implementation prison records from all major prisons in Uganda
of PMS in different prisons can be connected and where the PMS would be deployed thus making
communicate with each other worldwide. In such a it a truly practical deployable application that can
scenario a person sitting in Uganda can access the be used in prisons all over Uganda and other
data of different prisons in and outside Uganda. This countries.
will make the whole system highly centralized as
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CITE AS: Odeke Moses, Mubangizi Peter and Rwabwere Benson (2024). Exploring the use of
Information System Management in Ugandan Prisons. IDOSR JOURNAL OF CURRENT ISSUES IN
SOCIAL SCIENCES 10(1): 19-23. https://doi.org/10.59298/JCISS/2024/101.1923730

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