Regional workshop prepares Caribbean countries for IMO audits

The workshop took place in Kingston, Jamaica (8-12 April), organized by IMO and the Maritime Authority of Jamaica, as host country.

In total, 23 participants from Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Belize, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Jamaica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago gained the knowledge and skills requiredto undergo IMO's mandatoryauditandpost-audit activities.Most of the participating countries will be undergoing audits in 2024 and 2025.

The auditscheme aimsto provide a comprehensive and objective assessment of how effectively a State is applyingcertain fundamental IMO treaties relating to safety, marine protectionand seafarer training.

The workshop focused on enhancingthe capacity, capabilityand effectiveness of maritime administrations in implementing and enforcing provisions of mandatory IMO instruments and the IMO Instruments Implementation Code (III Code).

Maritime administrators receivedguidance for the preparation and conduct of audits under IMSAS, as well as the development of corrective action plans where needed. They addressed actions to identifyand eliminate the root causes of findings or observation in an audit in order toprevent their recurrence.

All IMO Member States are required toundergo a mandatory audit within the seven-year audit cycle. Up to 25 Member State audits per year are expected to be audited under the Scheme. To date, 120 audits have been conductedunder IMSASsince the Scheme became mandatoryin January 2016.