Tanzania takes a leaf from ZRP

functional Tourism Police Unit in resort areas, with some of the officers stationed at hotels and other places of interest.
In an interview last week, Asst Comm Kitalika said Tanzanian police needed to learn more from their Zim­babwean counterparts.

“The visit was very nice and fruit­ful,” he said.
“We want to implement the tourism police unit. I have got all the imple­ments I want from here and will use them as a tool back home.”
Asst Comm Kitalika said the tourism unit was essential to protect tourists coming into Tanzania.

“They are the ones bringing more foreign currency in the country, so there is a need to ensure their secu­rity,” he said.
Asst Comm Kitalika said once the unit was formed, he was going to invite the local police to check on progress made and give advice.
Chief police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena yesterday said the copying of ideas from the ZRP by regional forces showed the confidence they had in the local officers.

He said ZRP was committed to sharing information with their coun­terparts in the region.
Snr Asst Comm Bvudzijena said the tourism unit, formed in 2003, was meant to reassure travellers and tourism agents that the force was determined to ensure their safety.

“Its objectives were to address the concerns and bad publicity that we had received with the advent of the land reform programme,” he said.
Zimbabwe suffered bad publicity, especially in the early 2000s, which resulted in tourists shunning the country on the pretext that the coun­try was not safe.