MOLDOVA
STRENGTHENING FIRE AND RESCUE CAPABILITY ACROSS MOLDOVA
Since 2013, six FIRE AID partners, supported by 8 UK fire and rescue services, have worked with Moldova’s national fire service to provide essential equipment, specialist training and road safety education.
When the project began, Moldova was operating with an ageing and severely limited fleet. Just 144 fire appliances served the entire country, 92 fewer than the recommended minimum. Only 8 were equipped to respond to road traffic collisions, and 93% were more than 13 years old, while only 7% of appliances fell within the government’s own terms of service.
For firefighters, this meant responding to emergencies with vehicles and equipment that were often far beyond the standards expected of a modern fire and rescue service.
Through long-term partnership, donated equipment has been combined with practical training to strengthen emergency response across the country.
our impact since 2013
Our response
FIRE AID and our partners have supplied Moldova with 45 modern, serviceable fire and rescue vehicles strengthening response capability.
eqUIPMENT ONLY WORKS WITH TRAINING
Alongside the equipment programme, more than 1,200 Moldovan firefighters have received training delivered by over 50 volunteer UK fire and rescue instructors.
15 Moldovan delegates have also travelled to the UK for further training with UK fire and rescue services, creating opportunities to develop skills, exchange knowledge and strengthen professional relationships between services.
This combination of equipment and training is central. Ensuring that donated resources translate into practical capability that firefighters can use safely and effectively.
FROM DONATED EQUIPMENT TO MEASURABLE IMPACT
With approximately £150,000 of donor investment, FIRE AID reports that the Moldova programme has delivered around £1.2 million in value through vehicles, equipment, training and education.
TAKING ROAD SAFETY INTO THE CLASSROOM
The Moldova project has extended beyond emergency response to prevention and road safety education.
More than 3,000 schoolchildren have been reached through road safety education, including the introduction of the EASST Road Safety Education Pack into Moldova’s national curriculum, supported by the Moldovan Government.
Embedding road safety education within schools means the project is not only helping emergency services respond when collisions happen, but supporting longer-term efforts to prevent them.
Project History
2013
FIRE AID begins working in the Republic of Moldova. At the time, 144 fire appliances covered the entire country — 92 fewer than the recommended minimum — and only eight were equipped to respond to road traffic collisions. Just 7% fell within the government's own terms of service, and 93% were more than 13 years old.
- 144 appliances nationwide
- 93% over 13 years old
2013–2024
Six FIRE AID members, supported by seven UK fire and rescue services, deliver equipment and training to Moldova's national fire service. Volunteer UK instructors train firefighters in-country, Moldovan delegates travel to the UK to train alongside UK crews, and the EASST Road Safety Education Pack is adopted into the Moldovan national curriculum with government backing.
- 1,200 firefighters trained
- 50 UK volunteer instructors
- 2,500 school children reached
Ongoing
Donated appliances, ambulances, PPE and rescue equipment are in daily service across Moldova, replacing vehicles built as far back as 1967. The equipment and training delivered so far are estimated to have saved more than 200 lives, and the partnership continues.
- 45 fire appliances
- 500 PPE sets
- 63 road traffic collision sets
A partnership designed to become locally sustainable
Our work in Moldova shows what long term investment in local fire and rescue capability can achieve. When the programme began in 2013, 93% of the country’s fire appliances were more than 13 years old, and only eight were equipped to respond to road traffic collisions. Since then, FIRE AID members and UK fire and rescue services have provided vehicles, specialist equipment and training, reaching more than 1,200 firefighters.
That support gave Moldova’s fire service a stronger foundation from which to develop its own capability. It also helped demonstrate the value of investing in modern equipment, professional training and prevention. Moldova is now increasingly able to source and invest in its own equipment, and continue developing its fire service with less reliance on external support.
That is the model we want to see replicated elsewhere: targeted support thatstrengthens local capability until fire and rescue services can drive their own development.
In their words
“Upon our arrival at the fire station in Edinet, I was shocked to see that our appliance would be replacing a 1967 water tanker. The station actually had two of them, but only one had a pump.
It was then that I was able to fully appreciate the significance of our journey, and the impact that the donation would have on saving lives in Moldova.”
- Sam Sellick, Kent Fire And Rescue Service
Help close the fire gap
Firefighters cannot protect their communities without the right equipment, training and support. Your donation helps move life-saving resources from where they are no longer needed to where they can save lives.
Become part of the story
Every FIRE AID project is built through collaboration. Whether you represent a fire and rescue service, a company or simply want to support our work, there are many ways to help strengthen fire and rescue capability around the world.
aBout the data
Figures on this page are drawn from FIRE AID operational records, project reports and visits. Data reflect the reporting period stated and equipment totals are recorded at the point of transfer.