35 Members of the South African Police Services received Certificates signifying their successful completion of an Advanced Project Management Course recently. The two programmes, facilitated by The Leadership Development Institute , ran over a six month period with one intake from the East London/Bhisho area and the other cohort coming from Port Elizabeth were funded by the European Union.
 
With the prospect of the Eastern Cape hosting teams during the 2010 World Cup, the skill of managing projects has been identified as one in which SAPS members could benefit immensely. During her address, Commissioner Dlani, the Deputy Provincial Commissioner in the East Cape responsible for support services, emphasised the importance for continuous learning and challenged the Graduates to apply the learning gained from the course into their daily activities. The Provincial Head of Training in the East Cape, Director Frans De Klerk congratulated the group on their achievements in a field which is relatively new to the SAPS.
 
Mr Peter Kemp, Director of the LDI highlighted the fact that the majority of the Projects submitted for assessment focused on crime prevention and challenged the graduates to implement these in their working environment, something from which all citizens of the East Cape will derive benefit. He stressed the point that the graduates would need to ensure that, as Project Managers operating in a hierarchical decision making structure such as the Public Sector, their authority was not eroded if they wished to be successful in their endeavours.
 
Mr Kemp praised the graduates for their unerring commitment to the course, acknowledging the sacrifices that were made by them in order to achieve excellent results at the same time as managing work commitments and family responsibilities while undertaking part-time studies. "11 of the 35 candidates obtained Distinctions, something that they can be particularly proud of," he said.