An Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will be active in South Africa from December 5 to 15, the National Nuclear Regulator (NNR) announced on Thursday. The purpose of the IRRS mission will be to examine South Africa’s nuclear regulatory system and compare it with the IAEA’s safety standards and international best practice.

The review will be concerned with both the technical and policy aspects, and the state of development, of South Africa’s regulatory infrastructure. Ahead of the arrival of the international mission, the NNR assessed itself, against IAEA standards.

“The NNR is fully committed to peer review mechanisms such as the IRRS mission which is aimed at strengthening regulatory effectiveness for the protection of persons, property and environment against nuclear damage,” affirmed NNR CEO Dr Mzubanzi Bismark Tyobeka. “I look forward to utilising the outcomes and recommendations of this mission to modernise and further improve regulatory effectiveness in South Africa, especially in view of nuclear expansion ambitions of the country.”

The mission will be composed of 27 IAEA staff and international experts. It will be led by US Nuclear Regulatory Commission senior regulatory expert Victor McCree. In addition to reviewing the various aspects of the country’s regulatory infrastructure the IRRS team will interview staff members from the NNR, the Department of Health (Radiation Control) and the Department of Energy.

The mission will carry out a comprehensive review concerning all facilities and activities making use of nuclear and radiation technologies and which are regulated by the NNR and the Department of Health’s Directorate of Radiation Control. The conclusions of the IRRS mission will help formulate reforms to the country’s regulatory system.