ICRC said they have been providing food supplies to 17 detention places in Zimbabwe but denied getting into the exact details due to the confidential nature of their partnership with prison authorities.
Head of communication for the ICRC regional headquarters, Tendayi Sengwe, told Radio VOP that for the past two years the humanitarian organisation had been supplying beans, cooking oil and groundnuts for more than 8000 inmates in the country's prison.
The ICRC also provides assistance and technical support to the Zimbabwe Prison Service to boost food production at prison farms, upgrade water and sanitation facilities, monitor the nutrition of inmates and improve access to healthcare services," Sengwe said.
Sengwe could not confirm a story carried by Radio VOP on Wednesday that part of the cooking oil they donated was allegedly stolen by two prison officials, but reiterated that the ICRC was not the source of the information.
"The ICRC is not the source of this information. We are not in a position to confirm or deny these allegations. In line with the ICRC's worldwide approach to visits to places of detention, the organisation shares any concerns about treatment and conditions of detention with the prison authorities in a confidential, bilateral dialogue," Sengwe said.
In Zimbabwe apart from assisting detained prisoners with food, the ICRC has been embarking in projects that include helping communities with clean water, health care and providing inputs for small scale farmers for subsistence farming.
Post published in: Zimbabwe News