The Minister for Internal Security, Sheikh Musa Fazil Harerimana, has urged officers from Rwanda National Police (RNP) and Rwanda Correctional Services (RCS) to coordinate efforts and embark on using advanced skills in addressing security matters.

Harerimana made the remarks as he officiated at a one-day retreat that brought together top leaders from his ministry, RNP and RCS.

The retreat, held on Saturday, was the first of its kind and will be held at the beginning of every fiscal year to review what has been achieved and strategise how best the two institutions can coordinate efforts and deliver effectively.

"We have achieved a lot, but we still have a lot to do to achieve better things. That is why we need to coordinate efforts, share information and also hold such retreats on an annual basis to review how we performed previously and strategise ahead of time,” said Harerimana.

He reminded the participants that they have a mandate to ensure security in the country.

As law enforcers, the minister said, their policy is geared towards prevention of crimes, rather than responding to crimes.

He pointed out that policing trends have now shifted to human security activities.

"Security goes beyond just dealing with crimes, but also the welfare of the people and this is what we also need to emphasise,” he said.

The minister advised RCS to devise mechanisms of after-care services and to ensure that skills people acquire from correctional facilities impact their lives.

The two institutions agreed to enhance collaboration through joint trainings, development, production and engineering and capacity building.

The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Emmanuel K. Gasana, spoke at length about key priorities of the force and expressed the need for change in policing trends to curb contemporary crimes.

"There is a lot that has been done; the Government, the country and the leadership have been transformed.

Today, we are transiting from subsistence agro-business to being an ICT economy. However, when you talk of rapid development, you cannot leave out emerging crimes. With the new trends, we need to redefine our mission,” said the IGP.

He pointed out that evolving citizen demographics and new public safety threats are part of the major reasons that are leading to significant adjustments in policing activities.

Among the key priorities for the Police as outlined by the IGP are; capacity building, professionalising the force, crime reduction, community policing and international cooperation.

The Commissioner General of Rwanda Correctional Service, Maj. Gen. Paul Rwarakabije, said although RCS is just four years old, the institution focuses more on confronting challenges and collaborating with its partner entities.

As of last week, there were 54,084 prisoners. Among those, 60% are Genocide convicts. There are 13 correctional facilities across the country, two of which are women prisons and one juvenile rehabilitation facility.

"RCS has transformed itself into an institution that rehabilitates convicts to become responsible citizens when they eventually complete serving their sentence rather than a punishment-oriented body,” Rwarakabije said.

Participants agreed to enhance coordination between RNP and RCS with a view to share timely information on released convicts for effective monitoring and subsequent follow up.

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