The report of the thirteenth session of the Coordinating Working Party on Atlantic Fishery Statistics (CWP) held in Rome, Italy, 11-18 February 1987, is presented. The EC Commission, FAO, ICCAT, ICES, ICSEAF, NAFO, OECD were the participating agencies. Major topics considered were: review of recommendations and proposals from CWP-12 and progress; agency programmes and publications presenting Atlantic fishery statistics; statistics on discards; review of the operation of the STATLANT system; procedures for handling discrepancies in databases; Ad-Hoc Global Consultation on Tuna Statistics; integration of value data into databases; STATLANT B data; handbook of fishery statistics; aquaculture enquiries; fishing fleet statistics; nationality issues; food balance sheets.

Major topics considered were: procedural matters; agency programmes and publications presenting Atlantic fishery statistics; fishing areas for statistical purposes; fishing fleet and fishing vessel statistics; fishing gears and their standard classification; species items and their groupings; landings and catch statistics; conversion factors; statistics on aquaculture - inland and marine; recreational fishing; long-sheets and logbooks; standardization and harmonization of questionnaires, forms, notes, etc.; response difficulties - nonrespondents, poor and late respondents; the allocation of catches by nationality; discrepencies in published statistics.

Topics discussed at the meeting included: a review of CWP membership; general reviews of progress since CWP-22, of intersessional CWP activities and those of the participating organisations; a report on the establishment of Capture Group and Aquaculture Group; methodology and new data requirements; revision of CWP handbook; integrating the regional databases; the introduction of FISHSTAT J; and improvement in visibility of CWP.