Martin Endjala
Namibia and Botswana on Wednesday signed a Civil-Military Cooperation Plan (CIMIC) to be launched on 11 June in Gaborone and 13 June in Katima Mulilo.
The CIMIC launch is themed “Working together to ensure peaceful coexistence, security, and human development.”
According to the joint statement, the two military defence forces will conduct a sensitization campaign for the general public of the two countries, with the first leg set for 9 to 12 July.
“The two countries will hold community sensitisation in 19 villages in Namibia and 21 villages in Botswana. Discussions will focus on poaching, illicit products, illegal border crossing, illegal fishing, and the smuggling of goods, among other topics,” Major General Petrus Nathinge from the Namibian Defence Force said.
Nathinge called on members of the public to play their part by cooperating with the envisaged sensitisation campaigns to give their input while also requesting the public to report crimes committed. The initiative is aimed at keeping the border between the two countries safe and secure.
The inaugural session of the Botswana-Namibia Bi-National Commission, held in Gaborone from 5 to 9 September 2022, directed the defence forces to develop a detailed plan to commence with CIMIC activities targeting the communities living along the borders of the two nations.
Each county will conduct the campaign concurrently for four days. The second leg will commence on 6-9 August, during which time communities will be sensitised on the issue of human-wildlife conflict.
According to the statement, the forces and the relevant stakeholders will continuously assess the CIMIC environment to determine opportunities for humanitarian interventions to improve the livelihoods of the people living along the two countries’ borders.
A stakeholder meeting will convene from 9 to 10 September to assess the sensitisation campaigns and develop an implementation plan for CIMIC.
During the implementation, other routine activities, such as coordinated patrols, will continue as scheduled.
Through the two countries’ Bi-National Commission directive to up their ante, Major General Simon Barwabatsile of the Botswana Defence Force asserted that the joint CIMIC is to ensure that the two countries’ inhabitants living at the borders enjoy harmonious relations and a peaceful and stable environment.
The two countries’ defence forces, as a collective force, agreed to remain committed to defending the territories of the two countries, protecting lives, natural resources, water and land to preserve it for future generations.
