Capacity of prisons and detention facilities — all countries

Capacity of prisons and detention facilities — Mercosur

Capacity of prisons and detention facilities in Mercosur in 2024 — 663 people. Since 2024, the indicator has risen by 0%.

2024 663 people
World rank
Period maximum 663 people2024
Period minimum 663 people2024

Trend over time

2024–2024 · people

Change over the period: +0 (+0%)
Capacity of prisons and detention facilities — Mercosur, by year Mercosur All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2024 663

About the indicator

The official design capacity of correctional institutions and pretrial detention facilities — how many people they are intended for under the country's own norms. UNODC data, collected from national prison services together with the data on the number of prisoners. The indicator exists for the sake of one comparison: the ratio of the actual prison population to capacity is the prison occupancy rate, by which the state of a penitentiary system is judged — and by which countries range from half full to three times over capacity.

Important: Capacity cannot be compared directly across countries: their norms of floor space per person differ. The indicator is meaningful next to the number of prisoners.

Source: UNODC Crime Statistics, license UN data: free to use with attribution.