Abstract:
The roles to prevent and also fight fires, in order to save lives and protect
property, are still fundamental to the goal of fire service departments in many
Countries This study therefore set out to assess the effectiveness of training
and development programmes on the Central Regional Fire Service department.
The study adopted a mix of qualitative and quantitative research approaches and
a descriptive design to study 30 fire service personnel who had participated in
any of the training programmes Questionnaires were used to collect data from
the selected fire service personnel and an in-depth interview with the Deputy
Regional Commander was conducted using an interview guide. The study
concluded that a mix of methodologies were needed to be applied in training the
fire service personnel. Informative, interactive, and vestibule methods were
require in the form of lectures, role plays, and simulations. The key finding is
that trainees were best suited for their jobs after training and that the training
programme was aligned to the training needs of the personnel. Also, the training
programme had significant improvement on the performance of the personnel
in all the practical fields of fire fighting. However training programmes were
challenged by funding constraints to train the required number of personnel, to
acquire enough gadgets for practice and simulations, as well as participatory
training and also to upgrade the technology needed to improve on the fire
fighting abilities of the personnel. More stress-coping activities were
recommended during training. Collaborative efforts with donors to fund training
and the acquisition of gadgets were also recommended.
