Accra:The People's Legislative Assembly has passed a new bill extending community service to include intellectual services for minor offenses, while explicitly excluding crimes and acts of terrorism.

According to Burkina Information Agency, the bill was unanimously adopted by Burkinabe MPs with seventy-one votes in favor. This legislative move aims to expand the scope of community service, traditionally limited to manual labor, to include contributions that align with an individual's skills and abilities. The initiative is intended to provide more appropriate penal responses to minor offenses.

The newly adopted law also replaces the old transitional mechanism with a permanent system for commuting prison sentences to community service, making the process more predictable. The involvement of the prison administration in implementing community service is another significant change, aimed at enhancing the monitoring and effectiveness of court decisions.

The plenary session, led by Speaker of Parliament Dr. Ousmane Bougouma and attended by Minister of Justice Edasso Rodrigue Bayala, saw the revision of Law No. 035-2024/ALT. This revision responds to previous shortcomings in the law, such as its limited application to certain offenses and its focus on manual labor. By December 31, 2025, over 1,000 individuals had already benefited from sentence commutation to community service, participating in various productive activities. The government hopes these changes will aid in social reintegration and reduce prison overcrowding.