Almost half of the inmates at the central prison in Idiofa, southwest Democratic Republic of Congo, escaped overnight between Monday and Tuesday, highlighting the country’s longstanding prison overcrowding crisis.

Arsene Kasiama, coordinator of a local civil society group, said 47 of the 104 prisoners fled during the breakout. The penitentiary, located about 600 kilometres east of Kinshasa, was built in 1937 during Belgian colonial rule and has since fallen into severe disrepair.

According to Kasiama, the escapees were confined in one of the prison’s only two remaining cells. “Because they were suffocating, they breached the wall and fled,” he said, adding that an officer on duty fired several shots to stop them, but no one was killed.

Idiofa administrator Adelard Kintolo confirmed the incident, acknowledging that the prison “no longer conformed to standards.” He noted, “The fence is there, but it won't hold much longer, the walls are worn out. We ask the government to take this into account... they could consider the construction of a new prison facility to improve detention conditions.”

Prison breaks are common in the DRC, where many facilities date back to colonial times and are often severely overcrowded.

Rights groups have repeatedly urged the government to improve prison conditions and address overcrowding, warning that the current state of many jails fuels frequent escapes.