At 5 yearly intervals, an external (to the administration or institute)
evaluation or audit is to be undertaken by independent qualified persons to verify that
all management control and monitoring measures and follow-up actions comply with planned
arrangements, that measures are effective in achieving objectives, that results are
documented and given to heads of areas evaluated, and that timely action is taken to
correct deficiencies. Within 6 months of the completion the results of each independent
evaluation is to be reported to the IMO. For Institutions in particular, such external
reviews mean putting their house in order as far as quality standards documentation and
operations are concerned, as examination of section 7 of B-I/8 indicates. This is one of
the big tasks facing institutions before the 1st February 1997 deadline re implementation
of the quality standards systems, and the 1st August deadline when the first report to IMO
is due.
10. STCW 95 IMPLEMENTATION
Can Parties, Administrations and Institutions meet the deadlines?.
Parties have agreed to give the Convention some teeth through a new reporting procedure.
Each party will be required to report to the Secretary General of the steps taken to
implement the convention. A panel of experts will advise the Maritime Safety Committee
(MSC) on compliance, which will result in MSC publishing a list of countries conforming to
the Convention, thus providing other administrations with assurance about another party's
standards. The revised convention enters into force on 1 February 1997, and parties will
have to provide the aforementioned report by 1 August 1998. Indications are that many
Parties lack the planning or resources to put all the pieces of the jigsaw in place in
time. No doubt MSC will have to lend a sympathetic ear to requests for deferment.
It should also be noted that the transitional provisions of regulation
I/15 only apply to existing certificates and do not apply to new training and
certification requirements of the revised convention. A Party can of course apply all the
new requirements from 1 February 1997 if it is ready. Figure 7 over the page summarises
the position.
