Group photo
RSIPF Fire and Rescue Completes Six-Day Instructor Training Program
The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) Fire and Rescue Department underwent six days of train-the-trainer training in Honiara, conducted by two fire and rescue instructors from New South Wales, Australia.
Assistant Commissioner (AC) National Operations Lionel Kapisa said, “A train-the-trainer instructor development programme is to secure leadership and capability continuity in our Fire and Rescue Service. The focus was on two critical capabilities: hazardous materials response and vertical rescue, including ropework.”
Both are demanding disciplines. HAZMAT response asks firefighters to protect the community and themselves from dangers they often cannot see. Vertical rescue asks them to work at height and in difficult terrain, where precision and trust in their team and equipment can decide a life.
AC Kapisa said, “To our eight trainee instructors: congratulations. You have completed a demanding six-day programme, and you have done it with commitment and discipline.”
You are now more than skilled practitioners. You are the people who will carry this knowledge to the next generation of firefighters in the Solomon Islands.
“That is a responsibility, and I know you will meet it. Teach what you learned, uphold the standard, and pass it on with the same care you were taught. “Your service, your colleagues, and your communities will depend on you,” says AC Kapisa.
Mr Kapisa said they came to build lasting capacity within the RSIPF Fire and Rescue Service, not simply to deliver a course but to ensure its sustainability in the long term. By investing in trainee instructors now, we make sure it is passed on and that the RSIPF Fire and Rescue Service stays capable and confident.
“I acknowledge the partnership that made this programme possible. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the RAPPP Program, and Fire and Rescue NSW worked together to bring two instructors to the Solomon Islands,” he said.
That collaboration matters. A programme built with us, around our needs and our context, is far more likely to endure than one built for us. It reflects the respect and trust that define the RSIPF-AFP partnership.
Fire and rescue instructor Hosea with his certificate
Fire and rescue instructor Moses Maetabu with his certificate
Firefighter officer Sterry Vonavolum received his award for outstanding performance and demonstrating excellent leadership during the training
One of the NSW instructors speaking at the closing ceremony
A fire and rescue instructor poses for a photo with his certificate
AC National Operations Mr Lionel Kapisa giving his remarks during the closing programme at the Fire and Rescue Department
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