The Sunday News
Judith Phiri, Sunday News Reporter
THE Mozambican Prison Services delegation has commended the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services’ rehabilitation programmes meant to assist prisoners when they are released into society saying they will implement similar programmes back in Mozambique.
Zimbabwe and Mozambique have agreed to work together on rehabilitation of inmates as well as review their bilateral relations with the aim of strengthening ties.
Speaking after touring Khami Prison Complex, the Mozambican national director-general of the National Penitentiary Service, General Antonio Augusto Maurice, commended the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) for introducing rehabilitation programmes that will go a long way in assisting prisoners when they go back into society.
He said they will implement similar programmes in their country, and urged the ZPCS to continue doing the good work.
“You are doing very well. We are going to do the same programmes in Mozambique. We are really impressed about your projects. We have seen different projects from carpentry, metal work, agriculture, livestock production that includes dairy cattle, beef cattle, pigs, rabbits and goats among other projects. Looking at their (ZPCS) projects, they actually relate to our mandate of the rehabilitation of prisoners, these are the projects that when inmates complete their sentences, they would be able to sustain themselves and their families.”
The Mozambican delegation visited to exchange notes with the ZPCS, as they seek to implement best practices from the country’s correctional and rehabilitation facilities. ZPCS Commissioner-General Moses Chihobvu said Zimbabwe was ready to work with Mozambique in the correctional services.
“We have signed a MoU with Mozambique and what is left is the guidelines especially on transfer of prisoners so we are finalising this. Their visit has come at a time when they could see how the ZPCS is doing in terms of rehabilitation of offenders and also on the production side what we are doing and how we are assisting the economy of the country to grow,” he said.
He said they were also benefiting a lot from Mozambique on best ways of taking care of inmates and it was good for other countries to benchmark each other in rehabilitation and integration of inmates.
Commissioner-General Chihobvu said there were about 31 Zimbabweans who are serving in different jails in Mozambique, who if the agreement between the two countries is implemented had the option of completing part of their sentence in either country.
The delegation arrived last Wednesday for exchanging notes and learning from each other on the best ways of taking care of inmates. They have so far visited various prisons in the country including Harare Central, Marondera Open Prison, Marondera female open prison and from Khami Prison Complex they were proceeding to Hwange prison.
Khami Prison Complex houses Khami Maximum Prison, Khami Remand Prison, Mlondolozi Female Prison and Khami Medium Prison. Meanwhile, Botswana Prison Service delegation also recently visited Zimbabwe and toured some of the prisons in the country.
