Each year, the EMS and Fire Symposium in Kenya features a competition where first responders can practice the skills they sharpened in the classes and trainings. As noted by Fire Chief Wako Abgudo, competitions are a great way to foster growth and expand the skills of first responders by giving them experience that allows first responders to “think faster, work better as a team, improve their speed, fix mistakes, and build confidence.”
After the competition, AFM and other local groups present outstanding firefighters and EMTs awards to recognize their abilities. This year, in addition to awarding winners of the competition, AFM presented an inaugural award to recognize three outstanding fire prevention instructors. We would like to recognize the different award winners from this year’s symposium to highlight the ever-growing fire service in Africa and the determination of first responders in Kenya and beyond.
The John Kiama Fire Prevention Memorial Award
A core pillar of our mission is community risk reduction development. Through training firefighters and community leaders with materials like our fire prevention curriculum, individuals are empowered to train others and share fire prevention tips and skills. To recognize these fire prevention advocates who take their time to share fire prevention skills to others, AFM has instituted the annual John Kiama Fire Prevention Memorial Award. The award recognizes three fire prevention advocates who reached the most people through fire prevention outreach in local communities. This memorial award honors Fire Chief John Kiama, a pillar of fire safety in Kirinyaga County, Kenya who passed away this year (2025). In remembering Chief Kiama, these awards keep his spirit of safety at the forefront while recognizing up and coming leaders in the first responder community.
This year, Samuel Owino, Cyrus Kalemungorok, and Gedion Owiti received first, second, and third place respectively. These individuals are pillars of fire safety in their communities that keep those around them safe through valuable instruction. Collectively, the three award winners have reached over 65,000 people through fire prevention outreach! This number continues to grow as these advocates share their expertise with those around them. In total, the ten individuals that were considered for this award have reached over 94,000 people and counting. We hope this award inspires other first responders to continue their fire prevention outreach and empowers the award winners to reach even more people in 2026.
José Ngunjiri, AFM’s Fire Safety Officer, shared words of encouragement to this year’s award winners: “Congratulations to all the three winners! The more we are out here in our counties doing fire prevention, the more we reduce fires.” We are grateful for the difference these advocates make and encourage everyone to share their knowledge to make the world a safer place.
Fire Competition Winners
Competition was tight at this year’s Symposium! As counties continue to develop their first responder skills, these events serve as a way to develop healthy competition and foster determination. This year, 6 teams competed in the fire competition that the Chief Fire Officer’s Association - Kenya hosts with the Kenya Council of Emergency Medical Technicians. In overall performance, Makueni County took first place, with Nairobi and Nyeri as the runner-ups in second and third place.
World Class Training
Additionally, firefighters and EMTs took home certificates for their hard-work in there classes . This year, courses included tactical firefighting, leadership, water rescue, active bleeding control, basic life support, incident command systems, and more! We are grateful for the over 550 first responders who joined us this year and look forward to 2026 where growth and development will continue to flourish.
We are grateful for all the trainers and participants of this year’s Symposium! We look forward to the future of the fire service in Africa and are thrilled at the progress we see. To learn more about this year’s event and our other training trips, please watch the highlight video below and subscribe to our YouTube channel! Interested in supporting our mission? Consider making a donation or applying for a 2026 Mission Trip.