The APO Accreditation and Certification Program was introduced by the APO in 2018 to build the capacity of National Productivity Organizations (NPOs) as certification bodies (CBs) to run productivity-specialist certification schemes. The APO Accreditation Body (APO-AB) has accredited nine CBs, and three NPOs or affiliated organizations are in various stages of development to become APO CBs. The APO-AB grants accreditation and reaccreditation to CBs after they are thoroughly evaluated by APO-AB assessors. To ensure high standards and alignment with international practices, the APO-AB maintains a qualified pool of assessors.

A face-to-face training course for Assessors of the APO Certification Bodies was organized by the APO Secretariat to develop qualified assessors for the APO-AB by enhancing their understanding of certification requirements, accreditation procedures, and competencies. The training course was hosted by the APO Secretariat in collaboration with the Thailand Productivity Institute in Bangkok, Thailand, from 25 to 29 November, and attended by 25 participants from 13 APO members. The course consisted of instructional sessions, individual and group assignments, and mock assessments led by resource persons from Indonesia and Pakistan.

The course provided fundamental knowledge for assessing CBs, including assessment procedures and report-writing skills. Practical, hands-on sessions led by experienced resource persons were key to develop competencies and participants’ skills so that they could assist the APO-AB with CB assessments. The course also covered relevant ISO standards along with APO-AB standards, which broadened participants’ understanding of international assessment techniques.