IMO is assisting Member States as some prepare to undergo audits this year under IMO’s Member State Audit Scheme (IMSAS).
IMSAS requires all Member States to undergo a mandatory audit within the seven-year audit cycle. An audit determines to what extent the audited Member State is implementing and enforcing the applicable IMO instruments.
To support Member States in this exercise, an IMO regional training course for auditors was held in Constanta, Romania (20-22 March), primarily for countries in Eastern Europe.
Sixteen officials from ten Member States participated in the programme, including: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Israel, Lithuania, Montenegro, Poland, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Türkiye, and Turkmenistan.
The course equipped qualified officials with the necessary knowledge and skills to prepare their respective administrations for audits, by carrying out internal audits.
The three-day in-person training, combined with an e-Learning preparatory course, provided the latest guidance for audit officers on issues such as drafting statements of findings and observations during an audit.
Audits are coordinated by the IMO Secretariat. Audit teams comprise of qualified officials (nominated as auditors by Member States) and audit officers from the IMO Secretariat, where necessary. Member States are invited to nominate qualified auditors, particularly women, to enrich the roster of auditors under IMSAS.
The IMO Member State Audit Scheme aims to promote the consistent and effective implementation of the applicable IMO instruments, and to assist Member States to improve their capabilities and overall compliance with these instruments. IMSAS began as a voluntary Scheme in 2006 and became a treaty obligation in January 2016. Since it became mandatory, 120 mandatory audits have been successfully conducted.