rnarlne affairs, particularly with regard to policy and planning for narine development and ocean management. Initlally, the data contalned in Ehe infornation systen rdas predofirlnantly leglslatlve and institut ional,/admlnlstrat ive. The Eysten has had to be expanded !o cover a broader range of subject area€. Because of the necessarlly eide scope of the lnfornation system and the comprehensive nature of the information. it proved necessary to cohvert a manually-naintained systen to on€ rrhich is conputer-retrlevable. Considerable effort haa been expended during 1985 in evaluating needs and establishing neang for consolidaling ' rationalizlng and strengthenlng the system, 142. In the conversion of the infornaEion system fron a nanual to an elecEronlc systen, prlority has been given to the processing and entry of all. information havlng a bearing on State practice in natters covered by the convencion: particularly national legislatlon and infornation relating to nat.ional pollct as $ell as international agreements and arrangements. There is no exisling internaElonal data-base for such legislation with the excePtion oE the flsheries legislaltve collectlon of FAo (with whicb approprlate interfacing arrangenents will be estabtlshed), nor is there a well-develoPed systen giving ready access to all international and reglonal legal naterialg whicb relate to ocean space and its uses. Cross-r eferenc I ng to tbe rnaterlals on narine affairs on a gysten-rride basis wt 1I also be needed. 143. Thts central collecllon rill be supplemented by related infornabion on special national- charac ter i sli.cs that influence policy' planning and legislative developmene. The "country profilen conponent of the data-base will be crosS-r efer enced, for exanple, eo the alata-base on relaEed agreenents and arrangements in order to retrieve inforrnation on a Statera acceptance of an international treaty, membershiP ln inlergovernmental organlzatione, PartlclPatlonln najor co-operative undertakings ln the narine sector' etc. The developnent of