SINGAPORE - Drug reoffending rates have gone up even as the overall recidivism situation remains low and stable, the Singapore Prison Service SPS said on Thursday. According to its latest annual statistics, the two-year recidivism rate for the 2020 release cohort of the Drug Rehabilitation Centre DRC was 26.1 per cent, up from 24.5 per cent in 2019.
A two-year recidivism rate refers to the percentage of people who were jailed, detained or sentenced to imprisonment or day reporting order within two years of their release.
The recidivism rate for the DRC's 2017 cohort was 45.2 per cent, up from 44.3 per cent in 2016.
Singapore's two-year recidivism rate for the 2020 release cohort was 20.4 per cent, which SPS said remains among the lowest globally. It was between Japan's rate of 15.1 per cent and Hong Kong's 20.9 per cent, according to data provided by SPS.
The agency noted that ex-offenders may not remain crime-free or drug-free in the long term, pointing out that the overall five-year recidivism rate continues to hover around 40 per cent since its 2013 cohort.
SPS said that it supports inmates with initiatives such as counselling, befriending services and employment, housing and financial assistance at the tail end of their sentences, along with Yellow Ribbon Singapore YRSG and community partners.
Efforts are complemented by thousands of volunteers and dozens of religious and secular organisations that offer help and support to inmates' families.
The SPS said it would form a Desistor Network in the second quarter of 2023, consisting of ex-offenders who have remained crime-free for an extended period of time.
The network will provide avenues for ex-offenders to connect through events and interest groups to support one another.
YRSG also prepares inmates and ex-offenders for the workforce through skills training, career placement services and support from career coaches.
In 2022, the statutory board provided employment assistance to more than 2,500 inmates, of which 94 per cent secured jobs mainly in the wholesale and retail trade, transportation and storage, administrative and support services and accommodation and food services industries.