Samoa's government wants to use prisoners to build new housing projects.
Tanumalala high security prison. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Tipi Autagavaia
The Samoa Observer reported the Minister of Police and Prisons, Tialavea Tionisio Hunt, was seeking Cabinet approval for the establishment of a contractor group made up of low-risk prisoners.
Construction work done by inmates at the $US300,000 Vaia'ata prison project in Savai'i, was recently halted due to a lack of building permits.
In 2011 a trained master builder, serving a life sentence for murder, led a group of inmates who built a church building at Tafaigata Prison.
Tialavea said the unnamed prisoner also helped build two supermarket buildings and assisted other prisoners to learn carpentry.