Kenya’s Department for Correctional Services has introduced chess across the country’s prisons since 2024, in one of the most prominent institutional carceral chess programs in Africa MURANG'A, Kenya -- The black-and-white stripes of Brian Gatonye’s prison uniform match the pieces staring back at him from the chessboard at Kenya's Maranjau Prison. The 27-year-old has served about 18 months of a three-year sentence for assault and is due to be released in November 2027. During a break in the prison yard, he considers his next move: a pawn, perhaps, or a knight.
The break isn't long, but if he finishes the game quickly he may have time to face one of the skilled guards. But it is unwise to rush or act impulsively — in chess as in life, he has learned. Before doing an act, I have to think first of what the repercussions are — and then I move.” Gatonye is among a growing number of Kenyan prisoners who have taken up chess in recent years.
The game has become part of rehabilitation programs in the country’s prisons, where officials and participants say it encourages patience, problem-solving and interaction between prisoners and guards. At Maranjau, which holds about 450 prisoners according to Superintendent Humphrey Young, some choose chess over resting or playing soccer during their free time. They are drawn by the competition and what they say the game does for their state of mind.
The government has supported the initiative alongside the International Chess Federation, known as FIDE, Chess Kenya and The Gift of Chess, a nonprofit organization that distributes chess sets. The game is now played in all 134 prisons in Kenya, according to Phylis Ngigi, global outreach director for The Gift of Chess. Kenya participated for the first time in FIDE’s Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners in 2024.
Competitions are also held between Kenyan prisons, while some guards have been trained as chess coaches and play alongside prisoners. At Maranjau, Young said the games create opportunities for prisoners and guards to interact in a less formal setting. Supporters say chess offers more than recreation.
Responsibility and the ability to work with others are important elements of prison rehabilitation, said Monica Njoroge, a project officer at Resources Oriented Development Initiatives. The Kenyan nonprofit runs farming programs in prisons, where participants tend communal gardens while learning agricultural skills that could help them find work after their release. Njoroge is not involved in the chess program, but she frequently visits Maranjau and has watched prisoners play.
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