26 Jul 2022

Zimbabwe intends introducing offenders’ reintegration programme as a benchmarking exercise from Botswana. Zimbabwean Prisons and Correctional Services Commissioner General Moses Chihobvu said on Monday during the tour of Letlhakane Prison Services that it was an area where they faced a lot of challenges.

Commissioner General Chihobvu and his delegation are in Botswana on a four-week training programme for Botswana Prisons Services. He said it took time to convince families to accept convicted inmates who had finished their jail terms, the majority of whom resisted.

Commissioner General also observed that Letlhakane Prison was quite small but has a lot of capacity building activities aimed at sustaining the inmates.

He said there was need to generate food from prisons, not just to feed inmates, but to feed the nation, adding ex-convicts should be assisted to start their own businesses.

For her part, Botswana Prisons Services Commissioner Dinah Marathe said the offender reintegration programme was a new programme in local prisons, but still had to be measured to understand benefits. Commissioner Marathe said they had confidence in the programme and on people that delivered it, which gave them hope there would be a re-duction the number of ex-prisoners who re-offended.

Commissioner Marathe said offender re-integration programme and the parole system of Botswana were two areas of cooperation and collaboration, where the two countries could work together to assist each other.

For his part, Letlhakane Prisons Officer in charge, Senior Superintendent Botoka Mapholo Letlhakane State Prison was a low security prison.

The prison had a skills’ transfer programmes, which covered vocational and construction training as well as agricultural practice.

Mr Mapholo said offender reintegration programme, included pre-release programmes, offender-victim reconciliation and community-based reintegration committees. Commissioner Chihobvu also toured the prisons vegetable farm, guinea fowl, and small stock kraals. ENDS