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2007

2007 International Recognition and Scholarship Honor

          Wilhelmina Maledimo Petje joined the Botswana Police Service in 1991 and has served as the Deputy Divisional Commander under the General Duties Branch, since 2005. She is responsible for providing day-to-day management and administration of the South Division (with a staff of 1190 sworn personnel), which includes crime and general policing operation. Her duties include overseeing the effective management of personnel and budget, operational matters within the Division; directing and commanding significant incidents such as major disasters or major crimes; and ensuring effective communications and police response are coordinated within the Division.

          Assistant Commissioner Petje has served as a Station Officer (1993-95); a Staff Officer (1995-2000) and the Deputy Performance Improvement Coordinator responsible for performance management in the Botswana Police Service (2000-05). She has attended various short courses in Botswana and abroad. One of the highlights of her life was attending a Women in Management course in Sweden in 1999, where she interacted with women from Asia, Africa and Latin America. The course exposed her to skills that prepared her as a woman working in a male dominated organization. These include negotiating skills, resilience, conflict resolution, to mention but a few.

          Assistant Commissioner Petje holds Master of Science in Criminal Justice from the University of Portsmouth (UK) and a Bachelor of Education from the University of Botswana. Prior to her law enforcement career, she was a teacher, which she felt helped to prepare for her police career. She would like most sincerely to thank the IAWP Scholarship Award Committee for selecting her as a recipient of this year's award and is looking forward to attending the conference and interacting with women police from around the globe. "This will be unforgettable event," she says.

          IAWP Scholarship Committee Co-Chairs, Linda Mayberry and Cindy Shain agree. They look forward to meeting Assistant Commissioner Petje at the 2007 Conference. She is the first recipient of this award representing policing in Botswana.