BACKGROUND
As a response to terrorist attack using fire extinguisher for Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and the escalation of 2018 global fire extinguisher threat alert NO:A12/1171/18 by Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) on explosion of some fire extinguisher in storage as well as the increase rate of failure at the point of usage, recent interception of illicit drugs and small arms inside fire extinguisher cylinder etc.
The Ministry of Interior in conjunction with Federal Fire Service organized a critical stakeholders conference which consists of The Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Department of State Security Service (DSS), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), all state directors of fire service, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), NGOs/CSO, Standard Organisations of Nigeria (SON), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), vendors, etc.
Stakeholders identified the evil act of sabotage perpetrated by illegal/faceless fire extinguisher servicing vendors which include using cassava flour instead of Nigeria Industrial Standard (NIS) approved Dry Chemical Powder (DCP), deliberate use of less quantity of servicing material, repainting/recycling of expired fire extinguisher cylinders, and indiscriminate importation, distribution, and servicing as the major factors responsible for the highlighted threat to National Security. They recommended a technology approach and implementation of programs that will encourage the domestication of fire extinguisher manufacturing in Nigeria.
In addition, for efficiency and sustainability, the stakeholders recommended technology that will be private sector-driven. Hence the collaboration with the Infrastructure Concession and Regulatory Commission (ICRC) for Public-Private Partnership (PPP) process and subsequent Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval.
In light of the above, the Nigeria Fire Extinguisher Control (NFEC) was developed as an infrastructure under the concession of the National Fire Data Repository Center (NFDRC) enterprises unit.
The project structure consists of the Ministry of Interior coordinating inter-governmental and project management units which are: the Federal Fire Service with the responsibility of ensuring efficient coordination of manufacturing code and regulation of importation quantity using the Importation Quota Program (IQP). The State Fire Service is the second project management unit whose responsibility is to ensure effective coordination of servicing vendors at the grassroots using the Vendor Aggregator Platform (VAP), while 2TOC Solutions Ltd provides and manages relevant technologies as well as the infrastructure.
Finally, the project deployment has started with the Ministry of Interior correspondences to the management unit on commencement to enable them to set up.