In 2025, a team of firefighters from the US and Kenya traveled to Malawi for firefighter instruction and fire safety training. During this trip, three AFM team members had the unique opportunity to present fire evacuation trainings to a group of deaf and blind students in Mzuzu, Malawi. This school has not participated in any modern fire evacuation trainings or drills until this year when the AFM team visited. These drills sparked curiosity and excitement about fire safety in the students and their teachers which quickly spread to the wider community.
José teaches students in Mzuzu, Malawi.
AFM’s school outreach is taught utilizing our curriculum and Community Health Education (also referred to as Community Health Evangelism or CHE). These two resources become powerful teaching tools because of their flexibility. AFM’s curriculum was designed with community education and replication in mind. This helps instructors utilize the curriculum’s information in a variety of cultural contexts. Additionally, CHE blends education and outreach to cater the information to anyone. José Ngunjiri, AFM’s Fire Safety Officer and one of the team members present during this training, expanded on the curriculum, saying “AFM’s curriculum, one of its foundational pillars, is using Community Health Education. This Community Health Education is extremely sensitive on the community level […] they’re going to understand the community and how they relate to different groups of people and how to make them comfortable and blend in particular lessons.”
These trainings left an impact not only on the students, but on the instructors that were present. Frank Giovannelli, a retired firefighter and AFM team member present during these trainings, talked more about his experience during this outreach. “It couldn’t have gone any better. It was very impactful, not only to the students and the teachers but to the instructors and the firefighters. To include the disabled students, I think is very important. When you do evacuation drills, it’s much easier for an able-bodied student to evacuate than it is for someone who is disabled. To run these students through the training, I think was huge. It was huge for them.”
Students sit in on a fire safety lesson taught by AFM team members.
The 2025 Malawi team faced several challenges, but ultimately trained and taught firefighters, students, and community members from four major cities in Malawi. AFM’s on-the-ground outreach benefits communities, from those that have equipment and consistent fire training, to those that have very little equipment and training. We are grateful for our team members who volunteer their time, talents and treasures to make a powerful impact and look forward to serving Malawi for years to come.
Want to learn more about this experience? Check out this video interview with José Ngunjiri where he discusses his firsthand experience in Mzuzu, Malawi.
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