26 Oct 2017

Deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Research, Science and Technology, Mr Oupa Masesane has expressed gratitude to the International Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) team for having assisted Botswana through the introspection programme which will shape the country’s regulatory programme.

Speaking at an exit meeting for the IRRS mission on October 24, Mr Masesane said Botswana would reap more from the mission, and highlighted the country’s commitment in supporting the legal and governmental infrastructure for radiation safety and security.

The IRRS findings, led by the expert advice of the manager at the office of radiation protection and environmental monitoring in Ireland, Ms Tanya Kenny revealed that the government should establish and implement a national policy and a strategy for radio-active waste management that included decommissioning and disposal.

She said it was imperative to set the safety objectives at national level for a long term commitment.

The findings further recommended that an emergency plan should be implemented at the national level to address nuclear and radiological emergencies in a coordinated and integrated manner with other relevant national plans.

Regarding competence for safety, Ms Kenny highlighted that the government should make provisions for building and maintaining competence of all parties having responsibilities to the safety of facilities and activities.

“The national shortage of specific competencies such as medical physicists and senior radiation protection experts is worrisome, and the government should make provisions for such as well,” she said.

Giving responsibilities and functions of the regulatory body, Ms Kenny said the Radiation Protection Inspectorate (RPI) needed to prioritise its tasks and optimise its resources through the application of a graded approach in implementing its regulatory programme.

She said the RPI should employ a sufficient number of qualified staff, develop and implement a training programme to build and maintain the required competence of its staff.

The RPI communicates with interested parties and the public on regulatory judgements and decisions.

She said they should consider informing and consulting interested parties in relation to changes in regulatory requirements.

Furthermore, Ms Kenny recommended that the RPI should continue to implement, assess and improve their management system following a graded approach.

“The RPI should also consider including and specifying the responsibilities, accountabilities and the level of authority of the process owners and improve their record keeping system too,” she added.

However, Ms Kenny commended the government on the good practices portrayed by the RPI.

She said Botswana recognised the importance of international cooperation in relation to safety in contributing to the development of a global safety regime.

She said the RPI has established goals and strategies consistent with the safety policy and the strategic plan of the ministry. 

Meanwhile, the director of the Radiation Protection Inspectorate, Mr Thapelo Otukile acknowledged the mistakes discovered by the IRRS, and promised to bring change in the organisations in line with what the review has recommended.

Mr Otukile said continuous reviews were key to their mandate and that the RPI would accept the positive and negative recommendations made by the review team.

For his part, the director of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mr Peter Johnston commended Botswana for being the first African member state to invite the second IRRS mission within 10 years.

He said as Botswana moved to expand its use of nuclear and radiation technology, the agency would continue to support the country in addressing the challenges that would arise when the new technologies were introduced. ENDS