Bahrain's Ministry of Interior to train first batch of women firefighters

Women only make up 12.5 per cent of the Ministry of Interior's force

Women in Bahrain’s Civil Defence are preparing to take the next step towards becoming fully-fledged firefighters.

The Ministry of Interior is working to increase the number of women in its employment, which currently stands at 12.5 per cent.

When she joined the force, Aisha Al Yasi’s basic firefighting training showed her what her future in might look like.

“The breathing equipment is very heavy and training requires physical strength,” she says.

But Ms Yasi is keen on making the cut to join the country’s first generation of women joining their male counterparts on the firefighting ground.

With a degree in petroleum and natural gas engineering, working in the Civil Defence’s protection and safety department might be in her ballpark, albeit in a male-dominated field that is might not be every woman’s first career-choice.

After she applied and was accepted into her current role, Ms Yasi said her friends and family were "a bit surprised".

But with her father working by her side in the same field, Ms Yasi believes she has a realistic shot at breaking the taboo surrounding women's involvement in physically-taxing jobs like firefighting.

Women have been working with Bahrain's Ministry of Interior since the 1970s but mostly doing important work behind-the-scenes.

"For a long time now, women have been given the opportunity in Bahrain... All our colleagues here, the male colleagues, have been very supportive," Ms Yasi said.

Although she says the preliminary firefighting training she received was tough, she and many other women like her are prepared to take it to the next level.

"We still didn't have the opportunity to go for advanced training... but I hope in the future that we will get it," she says.

The UAE most recently welcomed 15 Emirati women into Ajman's Civil Defence while others in other Emirates continue to train for full-time enrolment.