Provision of training and equipment for Fire Brigade units in Kenya
| Implementing entity: | Polish Center for International Aid | Co-financing: | PLN 909,931 |
Tragic events such as fires, floods, mudslides and road accidents require clear and consistent prevention and emergency procedures, as well as suitably trained rescue teams. Several years ago, the Kenyan fire service and rescue service units were entirely unprepared to face such challenges, because the system of professional training for firemen was non-existent. For these reasons, the PCIAF, aided by the MFA in the Polish Aid programme, has been working since 2014 to improve the effectiveness of fire service. The described project was a continuation of those efforts. The two modules of the project (2017 and 2018) involved over 670 trainees (firemen and rescue workers) in on-site training courses staged in Kilifi, Meru and Kiambu counties. Advanced fire fighting and advanced high-altitude, marine and medical rescue training courses were held. As part of pilot activities of the Kiambu training centre, almost 200 firemen and firewomen from 12 Kenyan counties were trained, of which 193 completed the training successfully and sat an exam conducted according to training standards established by the Kenya National Fire Brigade Association (KENFIBA). In total, the project involved staging 52 training courses (over 2,200 hours of classes). It should be noted that with each year, the percentage of women among trained recruits is rising.
Fire service units were also furnished with fire-fighting and personal equipment worth over USD 1 million. In addition, thanks to a study visit to Poland (which took place in 2018) and based on the experience gained, crisis management plans were developed for 5 Kenyan counties covering an area of
more than 22,000 sq km with over 6 million inhabitants. Currently, the fire service is better prepared for rescue efforts, and in some cities the reaction time decreased from several hours to a few minutes.