Minister of Home Affairs, Adriel Brathwaite, has issued a call for the Caribbean???s emergency personnel to adopt regional standards.
While delivering the feature address at the opening ceremony of the Caribbean Association of Fire Fighters Eighth Biennial Conference at the General Post Office Building on Monday, Mr. Brathwaite said that the region should seek to adopt the Regional Security Systems Model (RSS).
According to the Minister, this model would allow emergency personnel throughout the region to receive standard training and then when training is required in other Caribbean countries, selected persons would be placed where there is a need so as to train others.
???There is no reason why a fire officer from Barbados should not be able to move to Trinidad and work automatically??? Moreover, it is quite possible that you could end up working with a fire officer from Martinique or French Guiana… So it does not matter what language you speak, if you are trained to an acceptable minimum international standard??? You are then able to work with your colleague from wherever he or she comes from,??? he pointed out.
Chief Fire Officer (Ag) of the Barbados Fire Service (BFS), Errol Maynard, added to the Minister???s recommendations, noting that ???training must be complemented with appropriate policies, regulations and required resources???.
He also highlighted that as training in standards is the preferred direction, and the BFS is currently in the process of completing Caribbean Vocational Qualification and National Vocational Qualification assessor training through the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Council. Mr. Maynard said that when the Barbados Fire Academy is opened, all of these standards will be enforced.
The Biennial Conference concludes on Friday, October 30.
jamal.weekes@barbados.gov.bb