00:03Here in Kenya, prisoners have been playing chess for fun and to help with rehabilitation.
00:09Among them is 28-year-old Brian Katonyay, who has served about 18 months of a three-year sentence for
00:14assault
00:15and is due to be released in November next year.
00:18He says playing chess has helped him to become less impulsive.
00:25Chess has taught me a lot.
00:28It has taught me being wise, being calm, choosing my decisions wisely.
00:42Before doing an act, I have to think first, what are the repercussions of that act?
00:49Then I decide to do it.
00:53The game has become part of rehabilitation programs in the country's prisons, where officials also say they see the benefits.
01:01Most of the offenders who are in this facility, they are petty offenders.
01:06They are here for crimes like assault, you know, disagreements that they've had with their family members.
01:13And through chess, they can learn how to manage their anger, you know, and even learn how to live amicably
01:21with the members of the society.
01:23So that's why we introduced chess as a tool to rehabilitate the offenders.
01:30The director of the Gift of Chess program, an on-toppet that distributes chess sets, believes the game could stop
01:37inmates committing other crimes once they're out of prison.
01:41Research has shown it is helping in rehabilitating instead of reconfining the prisoners in the walls.
01:50So the game is helping them learn how to be patient, to make better decisions, and maybe to narrow their
02:00anger.
02:01So it's keeping them busy also, and it's giving them like a second chance.
02:08Such programs have operated in some Kenyan prisons for several years.
02:12As well as NGOs, they've been backed by the government and the International Chess Federation.
