Harare (New Ziana) – Zimbabwe will soon deploy drones to monitor the country’s borders in a bid to curb trans-national crime, a Cabinet Minister said on Wednesday.

Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Minister Kazembe Kazembe said drone technologies would help with border monitoring and management.

He was speaking after meeting visiting Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (SARPCCO) chairman, General Kehla Sitole, who is also South Africa’s commissioner of the police.

Zimbabwe on Tuesday re-opened its borders, which had been closed to curb the spread of Covid-19.

“The technology that we are deploying will assist in curbing cross border crimes. This includes drones to monitor the borders; it also includes increasing resources for the police. We believe that we are on the right track,” Kazembe said.

“We are deploying technology to deal with illegal border crossing,” he said.

Zimbabwe Republic Police Commissioner General Godwin Matanga said patrols will be heightened at all the country’s borders.

“Since the borders are now open, the police will maintain a presence along the borders throughout the country,” he said.

General Sitole said SARPCCO was also moving to using drones as part of wider measures to curb trans-national crime.

“I am impressed that one of the strategies that Zimbabwe has already ventured into, at border management level is the introduction of drone policing. Drone policing is one the SARPCO strategies. But it is not going to end up at drone policing.

“What we are working on is to have a safer city command centre which is going to link the drones that are patrolling the border,” he said.

General Sitole said SARPCO was also roping in defense forces to deal with hard border crimes.
“There are hard crimes that are happening at the border, where there is a new modus operandi, serious and violent,” he said.

New Ziana