The paper has been designed as a handbook for Fisheries Administrators (a term used to denote those fisheries authorities responsible for decisions regarding the fisheries of their country)
for their consideration when establishing, or enhancing, monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) systems in support of fisheries management initiatives. The paper is divided into three main parts: definition and context of an MCS system; design considerations for MCS; and, MCS operational procedures. Annexes provide detailed examples of operational issues to be addressed in MCS system design and implementation.