Zimbabwe to deploy drones to fight drug trafficking and smuggling

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS (HON. MGUNI): Thank you Madam President. The police – their objective is to prevent, detect and stop any criminal activities within the country and even abroad, through Interpol. The drug issue is a world syndrome that is challenging all under-developed countries. However, when you look at where the drugs are manufactured it is counties like Columbia, Brazil-even Mozambique where there are plants. They are flooding into the country like Zimbabwe through the border or boundaries were we have very weak boundaries without security barriers. By security barriers I  mean that some of the parts within the country we have got rivers like Limpopo, Zambezi where people cannot just cross but if you go to the eastern side you can drive your cattle and walk across. A lot of people think they will come through the official border post.  No, they are areas where there just cross into a country without being detected.

However, we have implemented new technology. We are bridging in the drones that are able to fly, patrolling along the border post. We have an inter Ministerial committee which involves.  Finance and other ministries like Ministry of Mines where now we are buying those machines so that they can fly to take care of those boundaries to see who is crossing so that we search those people. Most of the drug carriers are using such areas. However, the fight against drugs  is not only with the police, it is also with the public as we are. We need to identify places where we are suspecting that there could be drugs and there could be drug trading and then we report to the nearest police station covering that area so that we arrest those culprits.

Also the Hon. Senator asked what plans we have.  We are also interested to join forces with the educational centre so that  rehabilitation centers are opened because so of the children are already indulging in drugs and are already over dosed. They need to go to a certain centre where they are rehabilitated and then be taken back to the community. I thank Madam President.

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