The rapid rise in the use of Information and Communication Technology for sharing information has led to fundamental changes to the way capture fishery and aquaculture statistics including metadata and data are produced and exchanged between national agencies and CWP Members.

The information sharing practices outlined here set out the working practices needed to implement CWP principles, standards, protocols and practices and establish harmonized systems for data collection, reporting and dissemination. These practices enable the sharing of capture fishery and aquaculture statistics at national, regional and global levels and between national agencies and CWP Members.

The availability of accurate, timely and reliable statistics is reliant on processes which follow good data sharing practices and make data Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable (i.e. the FAIR data principles). Further, the specific purpose for the use and sharing of information should be defined in data sharing agreements that are specific to the agencies and CWP Members exchanging the data.

Inspired by the FAIR data principles, this section on sharing practices provides guidance on:

• Implementation for the CWP Standard for Reference Harmonization including the use of metadata standards and the CWP Catalog

• Recommended GIS standards for geo-referenced capture fishery and aquaculture statistics

• Data exchange formats and data transmission issues.