At AiNA soa, every month brings new milestones, new faces and new stories that strengthen our mission to build a more resilient Madagascar.
The first half of 2025 has been characterized by growth and meaningful encounters. From expanding our network of local first aid instructors to launching new training programs and forming bonds with visitors from Switzerland. The past few months have reminded us why we do what we do.
Here’s a look back at the people, projects and most memorable moments of the last few months.
Multiplication: training new instructors
AiNA soa’s vision goes beyond reaching just a few regions – we want all of Madagascar to have access to life-saving first aid knowledge. But with only eleven volunteers, it is clear that we cannot achieve this alone. That’s why we believe we can multiply our impact by training people who will go on to train others in first aid.
The FA-WAY project, now in its second phase, aims to train new local first aid instructors who can continue this mission.
In the first half of the year, our efforts focused on Vangaindrano and Farafangana. We successfully trained 12 instructors in Vangaindrano and 15 in Farafangana. The training process consisted of two main steps:
- An intensive train-the-trainer course in first aid
- A supervised teaching internship in which all participants led a first aid training course in rural communities.
We have high standards for our candidates. As a result, three participants in Vangaindrano were excluded from the training – a tough but necessary decision to ensure quality and readiness.
“The 27 new instructors who passed performed well and met our assessment criteria. However, this is just the beginning. They now need more practice to build experience, confidence and leadership skills as local first aid ambassadors.”
Fire safety: our new training program
As fire safety is often closely linked to first aid, it is not surprising that many of our participants have asked us if we offer fire safety training. To meet this growing demand, AiNA soa began working on a new program last year – and it’s now officially part of our training catalog!
Our instructors, who are already trained in first aid, first completed a special refresher course. They then developed our own fire safety training curriculum with a practical manual entitled “Au Feu”.
a
In June, in collaboration with COLAS, a large construction company and long-standing partner of AiNA soa, our team conducted the first fire safety training session to introduce the new course.
We trained ten COLAS employees in Antananarivo and eleven in Tamatave. The feedback was very positive:
“We have attended similar fire safety training courses before, but this one was really outstanding. The teaching approach made the content clear and easy to grasp.”
Feedback like this encourages our trainers in their passion and motivation to pass on their knowledge.
A big thank you to COLAS for their trust – and to everyone who is interested in fire safety: We are ready!
When a journey becomes a revelation: Brigitte and Hans visit AiNA soa
AiNA soa has been welcoming international visitors to Madagascar for several years now. This year we had the honor of receiving Brigitte and her travel companion Hans.
Brigitte did not come to Madagascar for an ordinary vacation. As a friend of our president, she was already familiar with our work from afar. But this trip had a clear objective: she wanted to experience the reality of the country first-hand, understand our daily challenges and, above all, see how we work on the ground.
During her stay, Brigitte took part in one of our first aid training courses for individual participants in Antananarivo. For her, it was like a refresher course, as she had already completed a similar course in Switzerland.
She was able to experience in real time how we empower the citizens of Madagascar to save lives. It was also an opportunity to show that AiNA soa is an accredited Flying Instructor GmbH training provider and that our courses meet SGS standards.
As soon as she arrived, Brigitte was deeply impressed by the sight of children wandering on the streets during school hours. But it was only when she traveled through the country that she experienced an emotional shock.
The visible and extreme poverty she encountered left a lasting impression.
“I come from a wealthy country… I would never have thought that such extreme living conditions still existed. And yet what impressed me most was to see the people here smiling. How can you still have hope?”
A question which also made us ponder.
Brigitte was originally supposed to lead a workshop with our team, but due to the intense emotional impact of her travel experience, she was unable to do so. Nevertheless, she said goodbye with a promise to think about future actions she could take to contribute in her own way.
Thank you, Brigitte, for your presence, your generosity and your openness.
We hope that the strength, joy and hope of the Malagasy people has touched you so deeply that it wil l stay with you – and inspire those you share it with back home.
Mirindra