The purpose of this handbook is to summarize experience gained over recent years in fishery statistical development by the Fishery Information, Data and Statistics Unit (FIDI) of FAO, and provide planners and users of fishery surveys with simple and step-by-step guidance for developing and implementing cost-effective and sustainable fishery surveys. The methodological and operational concepts discussed here apply equally to marine and inland capture fisheries and are presented in a manner that is generic enough to make them adaptable to most commonly used data collection systems. Statistical aspects are presented in a descriptive rather than theoretical manner. Emphasis is placed on the understanding and interpretation of the statistics and related indicators collected, rather than on the computations producing them. Readers interested in a more in-depth discussion on statistical and computing approaches may make use of the list of references that is given at the end of the handbook.