CHAPTER 3
IMPORTANCE OF THE CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE
Introduction
3.1 The census of agriculture is the principal means of collecting basic agricultural statistics in a country as part of an integrated programme of data collection and compilation aimed at providing a comprehensive source of statistical information for agricultural policy purposes as well as for research, business and other uses, in addition to the normal statistical uses.
3.2 The census of agriculture provides a snapshot of agriculture in a country and an opportunity to identify trends or structural breaks in the sector and possible areas of intervention,Census data is used as a basis or benchmark for current statistics but its value is increased when the results are employed together with the results of other investigations, for planning and policy purposes, including areas of investment and informed business decisions. Often, stakeholders see the need for more in-depth studies of specific domains of the agriculture sector and rely on the census as the frame for focused sample surveys.
3.3 The importance of the census of agriculture in satisfying the needs of both stakeholders and data producers is discussed here.
Stakeholders needs
Agricultural planning and policy-making
3.4 The agricultural planning and policy making process is an evidence based process and heavily dependent on the statistical system. The agriculture census contributes to this process in a number of key areas, including food security and gender issues which are discussed later in this chapter. Other examples of planning and policy issues where the agricultural census can contribute directly to this evidence based process are:
- Promoting agricultural production and investments, to stimulate economic growth census data on land tenure, labour inputs, area of unutilised land suitable for agricultural production, average area of crops by holding, average number of livestock by holding, access to credit, use of machinery and equipment are all relevant.
- Rural development – agriculture census data at low administrative levels and/or by agro-ecological zones on number of holdings, land tenure, holder’s age, holder’s education, average agricultural area of the holding, average number of livestock by type, data on the type of farm labour inputs, on use of machinery and equipment, community level data are commonly used for the preparation of rural development programmes and specifically for supporting the market orientation of the agricultural producers and programmes for infrastructure development.
- Access to land and land distribution – the agricultural census collects various items needed for analyses on how agricultural holders get access to land and what is the structure or distribution of the agricultural land in a country. For those analyses the census information about size of holdings, land use, land tenure types are paramount. Analyses could be made from different perspectives – age and sex of agricultural holders, main purpose of production, legal status of the holder, land use types, crops grown, average total and agricultural area of the holding, agricultural practices used in the holding. This information enables formulation and monitoring of policy measures and programmes addressing the needs of specific target groups – young farmers, subsistence producers, land consolidation measures etc.
- Type of farming system – the agriculture census is the main data source for classifying holdings by type. For example, holdings can be grouped into whether they are subsistence or market oriented, family or corporate, crop production oriented, livestock production oriented or mixed. The essential items recommended in the WCA 2020 are an important source of data for the groupings needed. Different policies and programmes can be developed for targeted groups.
- Family farms - the analysis of characteristics and importance of family agriculture developed mainly at household level is greatly facilitated with the data provided by the census of agriculture, using data on total area of holding, size of the household, type of farm labour inputs.
- Crop diversification – the agriculture census provides information on types and area of crops cultivated by region, thus helping in promoting the cultivation of new crops.
- Support schemes – the agriculture census provides data for a better understanding of the agricultural inputs used and their geographical distribution. The combination of this information with other economic data is used for subsidy schemes established for economic support, thus helping to achieve better equity between agriculture and other economic sectors.
Research, investment and business decisions
3.5 In addition to serving specific governmental policy purposes, the agriculture census provides indispensable data for the research and appraisal of the composition, distribution and past and prospective growth of the agricultural sector. Changes in cropping patterns, the emergency of new agricultural activities, the geographical distribution of the agricultural population, the changes of the sex and age structure of holders, availability of and trends in agricultural labour force are examples of relevant issues for research and solving practical problems of industrial and commercial growth and management. In-depth agricultural research can be used to support evidence-based planning and policy-making, through the use of specialized statistical methods. By using these methods, it is possible to quantify the relationships between different characteristics, to better understand the reasons why farmers make certain decisions, and their likely response to particular policy actions. Agricultural censuses are often the only source of data for such analysis due to the availability of individual holding data. Research could facilitate the identification of business opportunities. Census data could, for example, help to identify comparative advantages of certain crops or livestock for export purposes and suggest the need for government or private investments to promote export oriented production.
3.6 An agricultural census is also a valuable source of data for the private sector and the agricultural industry. The main interest for the private sector is usually in data to help make commercial decisions. A food processing company could use agricultural census data on the number of growers and the area for specific crops in each district to help identify suitable sites for its processing plants. An input supplier could use census data on input use for each crop by district to better understand market opportunities. Farm machinery suppliers could make use of data on the area of each type of crop grown and the number of growers to assess the potential demand for their products.
Agriculture and the environment
3.7 Agriculture impacts the environment and on the other hand, it is also a source of environmental services. As the Global Strategy to Improve Agricultural and Rural Statistics” points out: “The establishment of policies and programs for mitigating the environmental impacts or to capitalize its potential as a source of environmental services require extensive information”. Agricultural censuses are sources of structural information that upon comparison in different points of time contributes to the monitoring of environmental changes. Besides, data on the use of environmentally friendly practices and inputs collected through the census of agriculture helps decision makers and planners when adopting measures to mitigate adverse effects.
3.8 Environmental impacts of agricultural practices such as of methods of ploughing, crop rotation, or sources for high GHG emissions can be analysed thus helping countries to improve their ability to plan effective climate change responses and access international funding (see Chapter 8, theme 6 Agricultural practices and Theme 15 Environment/Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions).
3.9 Information on land use from the census of agriculture is crucial to analyze agriculture sustainability and productivity. “The use of land can also have environmental consequences that range from pollution of waterways to global warming” and the census of agriculture is the main source on the actual land use in a country.
3.10 The Kyoto Protocol, entered into force in 2005, operationalised the objective of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere “at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system” (Art. 2).In such framework, participating states should regularly report their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from all sectors, including agriculture. Countries can use data onland use, land use change, andforestry (LULUCF) (sink activities) in monitoring the achievement of their targets.Countries are being asked to report their emissions at two-year intervals. These new requirements translate directly into significant increases in capacity development needs to improve the data collection and analysis related to climate change. In response to this new need, the WCA 2020 programme introduces the possibility for countries to establish the baseline for such reports and can provide frame information for designing and conducting periodical sample surveys collecting data necessary for estimation of greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector and calculation of other agro-environmental indicators.
3.11 Another important use of census information to measure environmental impact refers to water management and irrigation. Methods of irrigation, sources of water and final disposal of water used for irrigation are important elements to analyze threats and actual risks to environment. The theme on water management included in this programme is also useful for this analysis.
Food security
3.12 Assessing food security in the census of agriculture is challenging. For this reason, the WCA 2020 introduces an innovative approach in its census supplementary theme on food security to access valid information on the severity of food insecurity as experienced by individuals in the population. The approach, developed by FAO and known as the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), aims to measure household food security through experience-based food insecurity. These are developed on the premise that the severity of the food insecurity situation of an individual or a household can be inferred from observing typical behaviours and experiences associated with food insecurity. These include, for example, the condition of being worried about not being able to procure food, having to compromise on the variety and quality of foods consumed, and being forced to cut portions or to skip meals.
3.13 On the food availability side, data from the agricultural census helps in understanding the structure of the food production industry and the constraints faced by farmers in increasing agricultural production, as well as suggesting strategies for increasing agricultural productivity. Cropping patterns can be studied along with information on the use of irrigation, farm machinery and improved varieties of seed to help develop programmes for increasing food production.
3.14 The collection of community-level data, (see Chapter 9) can also be especially useful in this area. For example, data on the presence of agricultural produce markets and other infrastructure in the community can help to assess the effectiveness of the food distribution system.
3.15 Issues related to stability of food supplies, such as weather conditions and exposure to natural disasters, can also be studied from the food security theme as well as the community component of the agricultural census.
3.16 The agricultural census also provides broad economic, social and environmental indicators to show the background against which the food economy operates. As seen before, the agricultural census can help in studies of environmental issues that may affect agricultural output. Household data from the agricultural census may also highlight social issues affecting food security, such as changes in demographic patterns and household structures.
Work in agriculture
3.17 The agricultural census is essential to obtain relevant data on work inputs and main work activities, as well as on labour force in the agriculture sector broken down by different characteristics (see Theme 09). Unlike conventional labour force surveys that provide work data using a short reference period (usually one week), the agricultural census uses a long reference period (usually one year) in order to better capture the seasonal character of the agricultural activities. From this point of view, the agricultural census data complements the work data collected in some household-based surveys (labour force surveys, income and expenditure surveys, Living Standard Measurement Surveys) carried out by countries on a regular or ad hoc basis. In the absence of such surveys, the agricultural census fills important gaps in the national statistics of work.
3.18 The agricultural census constitutes an important data source to evaluate levels of participation and time worked on agricultural holdings, including those which produce agricultural goods mainly for own final use. The latter are especially relevant and important for developing countries. The collection of data on the main activity, time worked, labour force status, status in employment by each household member, in conjunction with demographic and social characteristics, gives additional value to census data collection, enabling comprehensive analysis of work data taking into account gender, education, etc.
3.19 Census data on status in employment of main job and form of payment by selected characteristics, such as types of agricultural holdings or main purpose of production of the holding, is a valuable source to support labour and other social policies related to the quality of employment, as well as for macroeconomic purposes. To shed light on the integration of agricultural household members of working age into the labour market, the census provides valuable information on their labour force status.
3.20 The use of an annual reference period in census data collection is especially important for national accounts estimates and to assess the relationship of work statistics with other economic and social statistics that also use a long reference period, such as statistics on household income, poverty, social exclusion and education.
3.21 The concepts and definitions for work statistics applied in the WCA 2020 are in line with the “Resolution concerning statistics of work, employment and labour underutilization” (ILO, 2013) adopted by the 19th International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) in 2013.
The role of gender in agriculture
3.22 It is globally acknowledged that the need of promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women are key elements in advancing social and economic progress. Women are often disadvantaged because of discriminatory social norms and legal institutions, and this may be reflected in disparities in literacy, educational opportunities, participation in the labour market, and the allocation of work on the family farm. The agricultural census has an important role to play in providing gender data related to agriculture to help monitor progress towards achieving gender equality goals.