Makala Central Prison

Makala Central Prison (French: Prison centrale de Makala), or Makala Prison^[1] (French: Prison de Makala, Lingala: Bolóko ya Makala), is the biggest prison in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), located in its capital city, Kinshasa.^[2] It is located in the city center, 3 miles (4.8 km) from the presidential palace.^[3]

Makala Central Prison

Location	Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Status	Operational
Capacity	1,500
Population	14,000–15,000 (as of 2024)
Notable prisoners
Stanis Bujakera Tshiamala, Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, Emmanuel Dungia, Bruno Tshibala, Muanda Nsemi

Makala Prison is located between the communes of Makala and Selembao. With a theoretical capacity of 1,500 detainees,^[4][5] Makala is the only detention centre in Kinshasa, with the exception of Ndolo military prison.^[6]

The security of each of the eleven pavilions where prisoners are housed is ensured by the inmates.^[7] There are no police officers or prison guards inside the site.^[7] Instead, prisoners armed with batons guard the entrances and exits of each pavilion.^[7]

Capacity

Makala Prison has capacity for 1,500 prisoners,^[2] and holds both male and female prisoners.^[3] However, Makala Prison is highly overcrowded, housing between 14,000 and 15,000 inmates.^[8] According to activists, this leads to inmates often starving to death.^[3] In 2020, it was estimated that more than 90% of the people held at the prison were awaiting trial,^[9] and only 6% were actually serving sentences.^[10]

History

Makala Prison was created in 1957 during the rule of the Belgian Congo.^[4] There was a jailbreak in 2017,^[11] and an attempted jailbreak in 2024.^[12] Thousands escaped and dozens died in the 2017 incident,^[11] while over a hundred died and none escaped in the 2024 incident.^[10] Jailbreaks are relatively common in the DRC.^[13]