The auditing of IMO Member States to assess how effectively they administer and implement key IMO instruments becomes mandatory on 1 January 2016. As part of the preparation for that process, the first training course for audit team leaders under the IMO Member State Audit Scheme is now being held at IMO Headquarters (26-30 October). The training has been designed to further develop specific skills in audit planning, audit team and auditee management, effective in-audit communication, audit reporting and assessment of a corrective action plan. Experienced auditors from 16 IMO Member States* are participating, along with five members of IMO’s own Member State Audit and Implementation Support team. Up to 25 Member State audits per year are expected under the mandatory scheme.

*Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, India, Jamaica, Jordan, Morocco, Maldives, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Tunisia and the United Kingdom.