CAT/OP/BEN/3 62. The Subcommittee is also troubled to have found that the records on medical consultations did not provide a full picture of health care and health problems in those prisons. It was informed that temporary transfers for medical treatment at the nearest hospitals were possible, in particular for emergencies. It was also informed that at the Abomey prison, two or three HIV-positive prisoners were going without treatment, that four or five persons with tuberculosis were being taken care of by the health centre as part of a national programme and that a non-governmental organization (NGO) provided treatment for persons with hepatitis. 63. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party provide medical examinations routinely at the Abomey prison and that at all prisons such examinations be performed by a doctor. Alternatively, the State party should ensure that a consultation with a doctor can be arranged, at the request of a nurse, in the shortest possible time. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party: (a) ensure a sufficient supply of medicines and medical equipment in all the prisons visited, which will inspire in sick prisoners the confidence to seek treatment; (b) make official, through an agreement, access to universal health coverage and local hospitals; (c) provide prisons with vehicles to use for transfers for medical treatment; (d) fill the two vacancies for nurses at the Akpro-Missérété prison as soon as possible; (e) provide the medical personnel with in-service training relevant to the diseases or patient cohorts encountered; and (f) have an individual medical file for each patient and begin keeping records of the medical examinations of arriving prisoners, consultations, temporary transfers for medical treatment and deaths. 2. Hygiene, water and sanitation 64. In the Cotonou and Akpro-Missérété prisons, the Subcommittee found that the hygiene conditions were satisfactory, except in some buildings in the big yard of the Cotonou prison. Nevertheless, interviews with prisoners revealed that some prisoners from the big yard were required to pay for access to more sanitary toilets. The Subcommittee is particularly concerned about the hygiene conditions and sanitation in the Abomey prison, which it finds appalling and likely to pose a danger to inmate health. It is also concerned about the major problem of access to water and the especially awful condition of the latrines, which had a foul smell. 65. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party: (a) ensure that there is a supply of piped drinking water at the Abomey prison and that it is available to prisoners at no charge; (b) carry out sanitation and rehabilitation projects, in particular to provide decent latrines; (c) rehabilitate the Abomey prison and provide prisoners with hygiene products; (d) take measures for the collection and disposal of liquid and solid waste and excrement by specialized firms, rather than prisoners, to prevent the spread of disease. D. Minors in detention 66. The Subcommittee visited the Agblangandan Centre for the Protection of Children and Adolescents in Cotonou, which housed minors in conflict with the law, who had been placed under the supervision of the juvenile judge. It also met with minors detained in the Abomey and Cotonou prisons. Although the State party’s policy of avoiding the detention of minors is welcome, the Subcommittee noted with concern that the conditions in which they were detained were neither very suitable nor in conformity with international standards. The Subcommittee is concerned that some children had no access to any educational activities or real skills training. 67. The Subcommittee calls on the State party to ensure better conditions of hygiene at the Centre and to increase the resources it is allocated to guarantee better social and educational support for minors by ensuring that all are offered training to prepare them for reintegration into society. It also recommends that the State party improve both the amount and the quality of the food offered at the Centre. GE.18-16165 11