02 Mar 2022

Plans are afoot to develop a qualification for security service providers and security officers.

Speaking during a stakeholder engagement workshop in Palapye on Monday, chief inspectorate licensing officer, Mr Ross Sanoto, said the Private Security Services Licensing Board (PSSLB), under the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security, was responsible for licensing private security companies and officers.

Mr Sanoto explained that before they could license both the private security companies and officers, certain conditions had to be fulfilled, revealing that training was one of the prerequisites before registration.

He further stated that going forward, training modules would be nationalised and accredited with the Botswana Qualification Authority.

Mr Sanoto also explained that all security companies should be on board to know the kind of personnel qualifying for recruitment and licensing, adding that the minimum requirements for training would be Form Three, but not excluding prior training.

He said the use of information communications technology (ICT) would be considered to go with today’s dynamics and even beyond so that both security companies and officers could be more advanced than perpetrators.

Meanwhile, District Adjudication Tender Committee secretary, Mr Ontiretse Tidimalo, stated that there was no standard requirement for the tendering process as the requirements tend to differ per district.

Mr Tidimalo also commended the initiative to standardise, saying that it would help during the assessment process, looking at qualification methods and calibre.

The Palapye Sub-land Board deputy chairperson, Mr Jacob Kedikilwe said training was important, especially in this era, adding that it was time security officers guarding devices be enhanced to reinforce security.

Mr Botshelo Ralenyena of G4s had asked for the use of ICT to be included in the training module, as nowadays, even criminals seem to be well equipped with ICT skills. ENDs