RPAZ hosts another fellow from Uganda

Gwinyai Venge

HARARE: The Radiation Protection Authority of Zimbabwe [RPAZ]’s leading role in regulatory activities in Africa has once again received recognition from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which has sent in a fellow from Uganda for two months on-the job training.

The Fellow, Ms Grace Kukiriza is employed as a Radiation Protection Officer at the Atomic Energy Council of Uganda. She works in the Authorization Department where her responsibilities include licensing of facilities and carrying out public awareness programmes on radiation safety.

Ms Kukiriza indicated that she expects to gain more knowledge in the various aspects of regulatory work including authorisations, inspections, enforcement, regulations and guides development, management system and dosimetry at the end of this fellowship programme. She also expressed eagerness to learn more about the operations of the other RPAZ departments that they do not yet have in her country and these include Legal Affairs and Communications Departments.

Ms Kukiriza is expected to cover the following aspects of regulatory work during her two months stint with RPAZ:

  1. National Regulatory Framework for radiation safety
    1. Legislation Radiation Protection Act [ Chapter 15:15 ] , its development and proposed changes;
    2. Establishment of the regulatory framework and its evolution;
    3. Radiation Protection Authority of Zimbabwe :Overview of the Structure , functions and strategic focus;
    4. Resourcing of the regulatory body ( human and financial resources);
    5. National Cooperation and coordination (National Committees, Memoranda of Understanding).
  1. Functions of the Regulatory body
    1. Authorizations ( system of notification, and authorizations, national register of sources, review and assessment)
    2. Inspections and Enforcement ( Scheduled and ad-hoc inspections, enforcement actions)
    3. Dosimetry ( national system for personal monitoring and dose register)
    4. Waste Management ( infrastructure for waste management)
    5. Regulations and guides
  2. Regulatory Improvement Tools
    1. Regulatory Authority Information System (RAIS)
    2. SARIS
    3. Self – Assessment

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has continuously demonstrated trust towards the work of RPAZ which has now become a regional centre of excellence for the training of nuclear regulatory staff. So far, Zimbabwe has hosted fellows from Malawi, Lesotho and Rwanda.