One year after the First Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty (CSP1) concluded, implementation of the ATT is under way. A key component of the first stage of ATT implementation is reporting on measures to implement the ATT, as outlined in Article 13(1) of the Treaty. States Parties’ initial reports on measures undertaken to implement the ATT (hereafter referred to as “initial reports”) should demonstrate treaty implementation and provide greater transparency of the global arms trade and its regulatory processes. States Parties have spent significant time and resources to conduct an assessment of their compliance with the obligations of the ATT and to record this information in their initial reports, which have been provided to the ATT Secretariat and made available to the public. This ATT-Baseline Assessment Project report analyzes the initial reports that were received by the Secretariat by 15 June 2016. The analysis provides insight into key areas for treaty implementation, and addresses the following questions:

• How useful are the initial reports for determining whether ATT States Parties are in compliance with ATT obligations?
• Do the initial reports provide new information on national transfer control systems? If yes, how can this information be used?
• Do the initial reports provide information on good practices for regulating international arms transfers and addressing diversion?
• Do the initial reports enable the identification of new assistance needs and potential resources?

This report is divided into four thematic sections. The first section outlines the rationale for and purpose of the initial reports. The second section discusses the process for developing a standardized reporting form for States Parties to use in order to fulfill their obligation to provide an initial report to the Secretariat. This section also compares the contents of the provisional reporting template with the contents of the ATT-BAP Survey. The third section provides an overview of the information provided in the submitted initial reports. The fourth section compares the information contained in the initial reports with information contained in other reports on conventional arms, including national reports on the Programme of Action, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Wassenaar Arrangement, and the ATT-BAP Survey. The report concludes with an analysis of potential next steps for reporting on implementation of the ATT.