Namibia ready to tackle transnational crime

During the official opening of a national stakeholders consultative meeting to support the development of Namibia's strategy to combat transnational organised crime, Namibia’s police inspector general Joseph Shikongo said the country is ready to implement the strategy as soon as possible.

Shikongo emphasised that Namibia is one of the first SADC member states to show this level of eagerness, aiming to fully integrate the strategy by the end of the two-day consultations.

"Namibia, being the outgoing South African Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (SARPCCO) chairperson, should be among the first and exemplarily to the other member states in the region to establish and operationalise the National Organised Crime Task Force," the police chief said.

Transnational organised crime poses a great threat to the region's concerted efforts to foster peace and security, he added.

Comprehensive approach

The head of the Interpol regional bureau in Harare, Sello Moerane, commended Namibia's commitment towards the implementation of a framework of this magnitude.

"Organised crime threats will require a comprehensive and integrated approach. Such crimes have tendencies that rob us of our efforts to develop coercive responses," he noted at the meeting.

"This strategy will help us develop a national task force that will speak to the regional processes of consolidating data and reconciling the threats that can be identified nationally, regionally and globally," he added.