MAKKAH: Hamoud Al-Harbi, director of the Vocational Training Institute in Makkah, said inmates at a juvenile correction center in the city have been supplied with tool kits for trades, such as computer hardware maintenance, air-conditioning, refrigeration and electrician, to help them continue their studies and training.

He hoped that the move will enable the inmates obtain diplomas from the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation after their release.

The director was speaking on Monday during a visit by heads of vocational training institutes in several Saudi cities to the training center in the reformatory.

“Field training for prisoners who joined the jail’s computer course has been launched on an experimental basis. They will be treated in the same way ordinary students are treated and will be receiving stipends during the training periods,” Al-Harbi said.

The director added that 22 inmates are studying computer-related courses out of a total of 94 trainees in the jail.

Al-Harbi said the institute helped the prisoners after their release to find jobs in the private sector through the office of the trainee relations office or an employment coordinator.

He said the institute’s new building in Al-Okaisha will be ready shortly. The building, constructed at a cost of SR40 million, will have room for 15 specializations.