The Minister of the Interior, Mr Ambrose Dery has charged the Ghana National Fire Service(GNFS) to intensify fire safety education and enforcement to help reduce the upsurge of fire outbreaks in the country.
He explained that, the enforcement of the fire safety regulations would motivate private home owners and commercial facilities to acquire fire safety gargets and adopt fire safety practices.
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Mr Dery was speaking at the formal opening of the 12 conference of Directors and Regional Fire Officers of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) at Koforidua.
Mr Dery said government had given funding for the acquisition of 10,000 fire protective clothing for the personnel of the service and also for the acquisition of two hydraulic platforms to enable the service to fight fire on high rise buildings.
He said many fire service personnel who were due for promotion had been promoted and the Ministry of Finance had given clearance for the recruitment of 1000 personnel to help improve upon the human resource base of the service.
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Mr Dery remarked that government had implemented everything to motivate the personnel of the service to give off their best to help reduce the increasing fire outbreaks in the country.
The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Eric Kwakye Darfour commended the fire service for helping to reduce fire outbreaks in the region including; bush fires which had helped to protect the farms established in the region under the Planting for Food and Jobs.
The Acting Chief Fire Officer, Mr Edwin Ekow Blankson called for the review of service conditions to help reduce the rate of attrition in the service and called for service compensation package for Fire Service personnel injured in the course of rendering service to the nation.
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The Chairman of the Ghana National Fire Service Council, Mr Seth Acheampong who chaired the function, revealed that the Council was in discussions for the review of service conditions for staff of the GNFS and the Council had plans to provide service vehicles and rapid response vehicles for the Service in 2019.