24 Dec 2012

The annual cultural exchange activity between Zambia and Botswana is to be expanded beyond sports and culture. Zambian Prisons Regional Commander, Assistant Commissioner Sainani Manda said the plan is to expand the event to other fields of importance such as training of staff.

Assistant Commissioner Manda said they had realised that there were many things which they could share with their Botswana counterparts besides the games such as human resource training, which was a crucial aspect in their line of duty as prison officers.   

He said prison officers required special training as they deal with different characters that needed to be rehabilitated. He cited the Detention Centre at Gerald Estate as a symbolic facility which they could use in Zambia.          

“… through our relations with our counterparts in Botswana, we can easily convince our superiors to set up a similar facility,” Assistant Commissioner Manda said.          

Meanwhile, Divisional Commander North, Senior Assistant Commissioner Sherley Oageng also shared similar sentiments, saying they intend to pursue the educational aspect of their bilateral relations            

Senior Assistant Commissioner Oageng said they did not want to establish things that would have great impact on the communities they served. She said they also wanted the cultural exchange to be a benchmarking tool which both set of officers could learn from and share experiences in their work places.ENDS