The Ghana National Fire Service is an agency under the Ghana

Ghana

Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...

ian Ministry of the Interior

Ministry of Interior (Ghana)

The Ministry of the Interior is a ministry of the government of Ghana mandated to ensure internal security, as well as the maintenance of law and order in the country...

, constituting Ghana's nationwide fire service. It was established by the GNFS Act of 1997 (Act 537) with a broad objective of prevention and management of undesired fire

Fire

Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....

s and other related matters.

Functions

The National Fire Service was set up to perform the following functions:

1. Organise public fire education programmes to:
2. Create and sustain awareness of the hazards of fire; and
3. Heighten the role of the individual in the prevention of fires
4. Provide technical
   Technical
   Technical may refer to:*Technical , a fighting vehicle based on a pickup truck*Technical analysis, a discipline for forecasting the future direction of prices through the study of past market data*Technical drawing, also known as drafting...
   
    advice for building plans in respect of machinery and structural layouts to facilitate escape from fire, rescue operations and fire management;
5. Inspect and offer technical advice on fire extinguishers;
6. Co-ordinate and advise on the training of personnel in fire fighting departments institutions in the country;
7. Offer rescue and evacuation services to those trapped by fire or in other emergency
   Emergency
   An emergency is a situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property or environment. Most emergencies require urgent intervention to prevent a worsening of the situation, although in some situations, mitigation may not be possible and agencies may only be able to offer palliative...
   
    situations and
8. Train and organize fire volunteer squads at community level;
9. Undertake any other function incidental to the objective of the Service.

Change in name

In March 2010, it was announced that the Ghana National Fire Service was to change its name to the Ghana National Fire and Rescue Service. The new mandate of the service was to operate both fire and ambulance

Ambulance

An ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...

 services.

Vision of the service

The vision of the service is to prevent and manage undesired fires, reduce loss of life and property by the enforcement of fire safety measures in national strategic installations, and respond promptly to fire disasters.

Mission of the service

The mission of the service is to provide an efficient and valued fire and rescue service to meet the statutory requirement of Act 537 and public expectation. This is to be achieved through appropriate resource in terms of equipment, appliances, and premises and by effectively training personnel.

Collaborating agencies

In the event of any national disaster, the GNFS collaborates with other Ghanaian government agencies, such as the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) and the armed forces

Military of Ghana

The Ghana Armed Forces consists of the Army, Navy, and the Air Force. It is supervised by the Ministry of Defence . With around 7,000 personnel serving in the Ghanian military, Ghana has the lowest ratio of active troops per thousand citizens in the world, standing at 0.33. However, the Ghanaian...

, to deal with the situation. However, in such circumstances, the chief fire officer takes overall command.

Offices

The service runs a centralised administration with a National Headquarters in Ghana's capital, Accra

Accra

Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...

, and eleven Service Administrative Regions across all the regions of Ghana. Tema

Tema

Tema is a city on the Atlantic coast of Ghana, lying east of the Ghanaian capital city, Accra, in the region of Greater Accra. As of 2005, Tema had a population of 209,000. The Greenwich Meridian passes directly through the city...

, the industrial hub of the country, has its own service centre which is regarded in the structure of the GNFRS as a region in itself, thus making up the eleventh region. The service also has a training institution, the Fire Academy and Training School, based in Accra. Each Fire Service Region has multiple District Offices; presently, the service has 125 offices in 108 out of the 145 political districts of Ghana. In addition, 25 Fire Posts also exist throughout the country.

Chief personnel

The head of the Ghana National Fire Service is the Chief Fire Officer (CFO), who is supported by eight key Directors, mostly of the rank of Deputy Chief Fire Officer (DCFO). The Director in charge of Operations is, however, the second in command in the hierarchy.
Below the Directors are Regional Fire Officers (RFOs), who are of the rank of Assistant Chief Fire Officer. District Fire Officers represent the next line of authority. They are usually of the rank of Divisional Officer, grade I or II (DOI / DOII). At the bottom of the hierarchy of authority are the Officers-in-charge of the various Fire Posts and Watches/Sections at individual fire stations.