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Number One Forensic Detective Agency

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Factual: Crime & Justice

26/10/2011

BBC Radio 4 - Number One Forensic Detective Agency

The story of how Botswana has become Africa's leading exponent of crime investigation.

As the No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency returns to BBC Radio 4, Jon Silverman uncovers the real story of crime investigation in Botswana and finds that truth is stranger than fiction.

The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency returns to BBC Radio 4 shortly. The stories, of course, are set in Botswana. But did you know that this tiny nation of under 2 million is probably the most advanced in Africa in crime scene investigation, with police from all over the continent sent there for training ? And the United States has one of only four international police academies based there. 

Yet, at the same time, traditional beliefs, such as witchcraft and the power of curses, persist ; senior police officers are also cattle farmers; and the head of the police training college sees herself as a real-life Mma Ramotswe. 

The former BBC Home Affairs Correspondent, Professor Jon Silverman, has travelled to Botswana to unravel these contradictions and finds that truth is at least as strange as fiction. 


Producer: Vera Frankl
A IGA Production for BBC Radio 4.

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