1. Introduction 1.1 On 5 and 6 August 2009 a delegation of the Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services undertook the Committee's first official site visits when it visited the Pollsmoor and Malmesbury correctional centres in the Western Cape. 1.2. Most of South Africa's correctional centres pre-date 1994 and the facilities are not conducive to the implementation of the rehabilitation and reintegration ideals and strategies contained in the 2005 White Paper on Corrections. Central to the success of these strategies is the unit management concept, which requires the division of correctional centres into small manageable units accommodating small groups of offenders that can be easily supervised and monitored. This not only limits security risks, but also facilitates the implementation of the necessary development and rehabilitation programmes, while ensuring that detention is safe and secure and that the treatment and care of offenders fall within the parameters of South Africa's human rights framework. 1.3 The report comprises an overview of particularly the occupancy at the centres at the time of the visit, a number of the Committee's major observations as well as comments and recommendations. It is important to note that more than anything the visits were aimed at giving the Committee opportunity to acclimatise and get to know what the day-to- day operation of a correctional facility involves, and the major challenges impeding successful service delivery by the DCS. Much of what was observed reflect challenges experienced in most centres across the country, and will serve in giving direction to the Committee's own oversight programme and objectives for the coming four years.