Springs branch strengthens response team through training and fitness sessions

Over the past three months, AfriForum’s Springs branch has focused on training and developing its response team members through practical firearms training, as well as fitness and team-building activities. In July of this year, ten members underwent firearms training, which further developed their practical skills; in October, six members attended a separate fitness and team-building event, with a focus on preparedness and cooperation.

This training is facilitated by members of AfriForum’s “proto-team” (specialized response unit) and aims to equip a core group of neighborhood watch members with more advanced and intensive training. This enables these members to respond rapidly to more serious incidents—situations where effective cooperation and preparedness are crucial for de-escalation.

Through regular training and physical preparation, the goal is to ensure that response team members can carry out their responsibilities with greater confidence and efficiency. AfriForum’s Springs branch remains committed to developing well-prepared neighborhood watch members who play an active role in community safety.

“It is important that our response team members are able to work well together; when you are together on the shooting range or engaged in fitness activities, you get to know one another very well. We learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, which allows us to collaborate more effectively when emergency situations arise,” says Petro Kirton, chairperson of AfriForum’s Springs branch.