"The DIS has uncovered some networks operating in Botswana thus threatening our national interests. Such groupings were involved in the areas of terrorist related activities, fraud and money laundering, drug trafficking and distribution, human smuggling and trafficking, white collar crime and official corruption, weapons smuggling and distribution, illicit diamond dealings and corporate tax evasion to mention but a few," the minister said.

He said that some suspects have been arrested, prosecuted and convicted, saving the government millions of Pula. He said that commercial banks are targets for fraudsters while schools are in danger of drug dealers. "The other area of concern has been the unauthorized distribution of generic pharmaceutical drugs by some local pharmacies acting in concert with some medical practitioners to fleece unsuspecting patients," he said.

He aid that it is necessary for the DIS to acquire necessary infrastructure for its operations. "It should be noted that acquisition of offices, residential houses, security equipment and the building of communication infrastructure, takes a bigger share of the DIS budget during this financial year," said the minister.

The minister further revealed that government has deferred the construction of seven police stations and hundreds of staff houses during the 2010-11 financial year due to budgetary constraints.

The minister said that the rollout of Cluster Policing, Merger of two police forces and the introduction of Automated Fingerprint Identification System has led to a slight decrease in crime.

"The crime index for Penal Code offences declined from 53 crimes per 100 people in 2008 to 52 in the year 2009," he said. He added that even the number of road accidents has gone down whilst fatalities went up. "The increase in fatalities is a function of the occupancy rate of vehicles involved in fatal accidents," he said.

Seretse said that the Automated Fingerprinting Identification System (AFIS), which automates the collection of fingerprints and palm prints data, has been completed. "This system will allow for efficient and effective tracing of fingerprints of people who commit crime. The system is currently being rolled out to out-stations, and to date 30 police stations out of 46 targeted have been covered," he said.

On the state of prisons, the minister said that they currently have a holding capacity of 4,219 inmates but there are 4,861 inmates. He said the escape from prisons by some inmates remains a serious challenge as 32 such cases were reported last year while 10 others involved immigration detainees.

"Therefore, the department needs to do more to curb further escapes by stepping up security installations in the prisons such as introducing guard dogs for patrol purposes, improved security fencing and improved surveillance," he said.