Botswana: Stakeholder participation systematically manages ex-offenders’ rehabilitation programmes and promotes the community reintegration process, particularly acceptance and employability, which are critical in preventing re-offending.
As Botswana Prison Service continues with the mission to reposition itself through realigning and re-engineering all its programmes and processes, one of the trailblazer strategies is to draw support from the community, including the private sector. This is invaluable for the effectiveness of the treatment process and for strengthening the whole reintegration process.
Through this course, one of Botswana Prison Service’s valuable stakeholders, First National Bank Botswana (FNBB) through its Corporate Social Responsibility Foundation, came on board to ensure that prisoner rehabilitation is enhanced to add value to the lives of young offenders.
Speaking during the handing over ceremony of information technology equipment and learning material by FNBB Foundation to Moshupa Boys’ Prison yesterday, the Foundation Chairperson, Myra Sekgororoane, stressed their keenness in playing a part in the rehabilitation of young minds by contributing towards ensuring their mental and academic development.
She said the Foundation found it fit to invest in the initiative to make a difference in the lives of young offenders at Moshupa Boys’ Prison as advised by their strategic focal areas, particularly education and youth empowerment.
She also highlighted that the Foundation is also investing over P200,000 in an aquaponics system for Gaborone Women’s Prison as another initiative and commitment to re-tool those incarcerated for a better future.
On giving her acceptance speech, Commissioner of Prisons – Commissioner Dinah Marathe said the donation came at an opportune time when the Prison Service has amplified its transformational stride towards attaining correctional excellence.
She said that the Service introduced an ICT training programme in November 2021 for young offenders in Moshupa Boys Prison under the Skills Acquisition Programmes.
She thanked FNBB for the noble gesture, which will inspire the Service to propagate the ambition of intensifying ICT training and further revitalize the dream to extend the initiative to other classes of offenders. “𝘼𝙨 𝘽𝙤𝙩𝙨𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙖 𝙋𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙀𝙭𝙘𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙮’𝙨 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙙𝙪𝙗𝙗𝙚𝙙 “𝙖 𝙧𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙣𝙜”. 𝙒𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚. 𝙍𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙖 𝙙𝙞𝙠𝙖𝙠𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙤 𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙜𝙤𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙤, 𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙨𝙝𝙤!” she said.
The learning materials will assist young offenders to continue accessing quality educational resources during their time in prison, help them lead a better life upon release and improve their reintegration back into society.
She further indicated that since the introduction of the ICT programme, a total of 135 offenders have been trained, and the results are noticeable, as evidenced by the ability of offenders to perform basic computer operations.
The donation, which amounted to a total of P74, 689.50 comprised twenty-five desktop computers, classroom equipment, educational materials and recreational items, including Scrabble, mhele, chess, morabaraba and a refurbished library.
