3.  Damage to health caused by imprisonment 3.2.2 The extent of prison overcrowding in the ten countries and worldwide ICPR’s World Prison Brief database holds prison population data for almost every country in the world, with figures available for 223 jurisdictions. The Brief also provides information on the extent to which the world’s prison systems are overcrowded, based on each system’s official capacity.20 As shown in Figure 5 below, all but one of the countries under study in the ten country project are currently running over-capacity. In some cells the moving space is so small that some of the inmates have to sit on the toilet seat while eating. Hungarian Helsinki Committee, Communication in cases of Szél v. Hungary and István Gábor Kovács v. Hungary (judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, Strasbourg, October 2014 Figure 5: Prison overcrowding levels in the ten countries* *Figures based on most recent national official capacity data as of May 2019 (all as shown on World Prison Brief database). Figures vary by jurisdiction as to the specific dates to which they refer. World Prison Brief data indicate that, of the 205 countries worldwide for which official prison capacity numbers are available, 60 per cent have occupancy rates above 100 per cent. This includes 24 countries with occupancy rates above 200 per cent. By continent, overcrowding levels are worst in Africa, where 87 per cent of all states are operating above official capacity (and 13 have occupancy rates above 200 per cent). In the Americas, 68 per cent of countries are operating above official capacity (of which seven have occupancy rates above 200 per cent). In Asia, 66 per cent of countries are operating above official capacity (and 4 countries have occupancy rates above 200 per cent). In Europe and Oceania many countries are operating above official capacity but none has occupancy levels as high 20 The countries for which official capacity numbers are not available are: Egypt; Central African Republic; Republic of the Congo; Democratic Republic of Congo; Equatorial Guinea; Gabon; South Sudan; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Somalia; Cuba; Oman; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; Yemen; Bhutan; Laos; Vietnam; China; North Korea; and Tuvalu. 17