WIA licence assessment system complies

The Wireless Institute of Australia (WIA) continues with its successful Amateur Radio accredited assessors program of licence assessments and callsign recommendations under a Deed with the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). However, a lot of mis-information is circulating about the WIA Assessors and Learning Facilitators, and even the validity of the Australian amateur licence exams.

Recently, the ACMA Deed that underpins the WIA Exam Service has been wrongly interpreted by some, although it had been explained earlier by the WIA. The Deed with the Commonwealth sets out the conditions of how the WIA manages examinations, the issue of certificates of proficiency and callsign recommendations.

Periodic reports on it include key performance indicators, which measure the performance of the WIA along with its meeting of the Commonwealth's cost recovery guidelines and the maintenance of standards. The Deed requirements have been met, the WIA assessments are valid, and will continue while the current structure is in place.

Now, let us look at the history of how it began.

The WIA, led by then-President Michael Owen VK3KI (SK), signed a Deed of arrangement with the ACMA in 2009 to formalise the contractual arrangement, which included that the WIA would later also give callsign recommendations. After running successfully for some time, it became evident that maintaining a Registered Training Organisation for the WIA was not realistic, due to the high cost. The WIA brought the issue to discussion meetings with ACMA and the exam instructions were changed to allow for flexibility in the WIA’s Amateur Exam Service. This means that the WIA training is compliant as long as the Assessors and Learning Facilitators continue to meet the ACMA and WIA agreed standards.

The WIA is not in breach of the Deed, as has been claimed.

Fred Swainston VK3DAC
Trainsafe Australia
WIA Nominated Training Organisation

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