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A boat captain starts the engine and a prison officer lowers nets into the Zambezi River as the Principal Correctional Officer Jack Mukhuli, Acting officer commanding Matabeleland North Assistant Commissioner Moddie Nkomo and Provincial ZPCS spokesperson Assistant Principal Correctional Officer Bothwell Bhosha look on

Bothwell Bhosha
ZIMBABWE Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS), Matabeleland North Province has embarked on a kapenta fishing project on the Zambezi River.

The Acting Officer Commanding Matabeleland North Province, Assistant Commissioner Moddie Nkomo, officially launched the project on Thursday last week.

In her remarks at the event she said that the project would produce nutritious relish for inmates with minimal labour.

“The main aim of the project is to produce kapenta fish to feed inmates in all prisons countrywide. The surplus will be sold to the public to generate income for the self-sustaining programme,” said Asst Comm Nkomo.

She said the ZPCS was facing challenges in providing enough meat to feed inmates due to the economic challenges affecting the country.

“Kapenta will be a good substitute or supplementary protein source for the organisation,” said Asst Comm Nkomo.

She applauded the officer in charge of Binga Prison, Chief Correctional Officer Ginford Mupandaguta and his team for initiating the project.

“ZPCS is famous for being innovative. This is another example of using available resources to overcome seemingly insurmountable problems by the organisation,” Asst Comm Nkomo said.

She urged all officers in charge in the province to work as a team to come up with more projects which can benefit the service and the country at large.

Each station in the province, she said, had at least one income-generating project.

“At Nkayi Prison we have more than 300 turkeys, Hwange Prison has got more than 100 goats. At Anju Prison Farm we have got piggery project, rabbits, turkeys in addition to commercial farming just to mention a few,” said Asst Comm Nkomo.

Chief Correctional Officer Mupandaguta said that the initiative was a result of positive interaction between officers and inmates at his station.

“The idea of the project came from inmates who shared it with officers. Inmates are a very important resource for both the establishment and success of the project through their contribution in knowledge acquired both before their arrest and rehabilitative programs gained in prison,” he said.

He assured Asst Comm Nkomo that by the end of the year, Binga Prison will be having its own boat.