South Africa’s former President Jacob Zuma has been spared from returning to prison, with officials saying this to ease overcrowding.

Zuma, who was sentenced to 15 months for contempt of court, surrendered himself to the authorities on Friday.

He had previously been freed on medical parole – in a move ruled illegal by the courts.

Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said he had been given remission to address overcrowding in prisons.

The process aims to alleviate strain on the system by releasing low-risk offenders.

South Africa’s Commissioner of Prisons Makgothi Thobakgale said Zuma had reported to the Estcourt Correctional Facility in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal on Friday morning and was “admitted” into the system, before being released an hour later.

The remission status was approved by President Cyril Ramaphosa to more than 9,000 low-risk prisoners.

He says that this “remission process” started in April.

Zuma’s jailing in 2021 sparked protests and riots that left more than 350 people dead.

He was sentenced after refusing to testify before a panel probing financial sleaze and cronyism under his presidency.

He was however freed on medical parole just two months into his term.

An appeals court last November found the release was illegally granted and ordered Zuma back to prison to finish his sentence. Last month, the constitutional court rejected an attempt to overturn this decision.