In order to ensure the seamless conduct of the mandatory audit in October 2023 under the IMO Member State Audit Scheme (IMSAS) despite the global pandemic, the Philippine maritime administration, through the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA), held the Virtual Writeshop on the Additional Pre-audit Information (PAI) Requirement of the IMSAS on 07-08 April 2022 via video conference.

The MARINA-OSS Officer-in-Charge, Ms. Precila C. Jara, facilitated the said Writeshop wherein she explained the purpose of the undertaking and PAI.

“This Writeshop aims to review and accomplish the pre-audit information in compliance with the additional documentary requirement by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The said additional document is related to the four (4) areas of the Pre-audit Questionnaire (PAQ) and is intended to facilitate the Member State and the audit team in their preparation for an IMSAS audit,” Ms. Jara said.

Considered as a Member State’s “first line of defense” for the IMSAS, the PAQ is one of the requirements for the said mandatory audit and will form part of the audit team’s strategic planning before subjecting it to external scrutiny. On the other hand, the structure of the PAI is harmonized with the sections of the PAQ and paragraph numbers of the IMO Instruments Implementation Code (III Code).

During the Writeshop, the attendees from the Department of Transportation (DOTr), MARINA, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), Cebu Port Authority (CPA), Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA), National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), and Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) shared insights in providing the necessary details in the PAI.

Meanwhile, it can be recalled that the Philippine maritime administration, through the MARINA, conducted an Inter-agency Writeshop on Pre-Audit Questionnaire (PAQ) on 19 February 2021 via video conference to update and finalize the said document before its submission to the audit team. The PAQ Writeshop was held a year before the additional PAI has been required.