Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Importance and Uses of Agricultural Statistics Section A 1

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. What are Agricultural Statistics? The collection, processing, and analysis of data on agricultural production, trade, price and associated services. Can be classified into two groups: 1.Agricultural structure 2.Agricultural activities 2

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Social, Environmental and Economic Dimensions Agriculture used to be the main economy of most countries It remains one of the most important segments of the economy in developing countries Globalization means that conditions in one country or region have an impact on the rest of the world 3

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. International Needs Integrated data on trends and future prospects for agricultural commodity markets Assess role of agriculture in trade and economic development Guide efforts to meet food and agricultural production requirements for food security Identify environmental impact of agricultural activities 4

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. National Government Needs Economic development planning (SNA) Monitoring Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and/or PRSPs Determining federal policies and programs 5

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Millennium Development Goals Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development 6

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Producers and Private Sector Needs Need data for taking action including: –Planting, breeding, feeding and marketing –Purchase and handling of agricultural commodities 7

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Monitoring Poverty Strong correlation between rural areas, poverty and agriculture Data on subsistence farmers is useful for targeting development programs Community level data identifies constraints and opportunities 8

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Monitoring Food Security Data on food availability and access provides current food security overview Household consumption and expenditure data more precisely identifies at risk households and communities Integrated data including weather and natural disaster patterns is a valuable planning tool 9

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Monitoring Gender Equality Women and children in rural poor families often work as unpaid family workers Better data could assist in capturing the informal sector in agricultural labor Analysis of labor and agricultural holdings by sex could indicate gender issues 10

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Global Gender Statistics Where do women work? –19.3% in the industry sector (26.6 % for men) –46.3% in the services sector (41.2% for men) –35.4% in the agricultural sector (32.2% for men) Source: Global Employment Trends for Women International Labour Office - Geneva: ILO, 2009 ( 11

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Policy and Planning Research Analysis of an important or particular crop or livestock Geographical area studies can look at how to maximize production Policy decisions can use information on agricultural holding characteristics 12

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Monitoring Agricultural Projects Baseline data from agricultural census Outcome measures from survey variables Impact assessment from specific studies and, where possible, subsequent agricultural census data 13

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Improve Current Agricultural Statistics Agricultural Censuses Standardization for comparability Documentation of methodologies assists in usability 14

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Environmental Statistics Growing public concern over environmental impact of agriculture Need common framework with well-defined indicators (OECD) Track trends over time by type and method of production and geographic area 15

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Global Environmental Data 38% of the total land area is used for agricultural activities 20% of land under cultivation is irrigated 70% of water used is for agriculture, 20% for industry and 10% for domestic use Source: Food and Agricultural Statistics Global Outlook, June 2006 (faostat.fao.org/Portals/_Faostat/documents/pdf/world.pdf) 16

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Climate Change Agriculture is weather and climate dependent Need to consider changing climate impacts on production in fragile areas Statistical agencies in some countries are working to develop a standard framework 17

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Natural Resource Management Usually agricultural production uses a large percentage of water resource More information is needed to examine water resources by availability and uses Analysis of flood and drought prone area’s agricultural holdings and population distribution would help to inform policies 18

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Monitoring Biodiversity Goal: Establish framework to cover the diversity of flora and fauna within the social, economic and environmental interactions, including agricultural holdings –Agricultural holdings cover large areas and provide habitat for flora and fauna, making them a great means of monitoring biodiversity 19

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Monitoring Biofuel Needs Agricultural statistics are good source to track biofuel trends and market impact Feed stocks being used as biofuel (sugarcane, corn, etc.) –Increased profits for agricultural producers –Increases price of food and feed sources for others 20

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Section A Quiz 1.Agricultural statistics can be classified into what two groups? 2. Why do producers and private sector need agricultural statistics? 3.What percentage of the world’s land is use for agricultural activities? 4.What does agriculture have to do with poverty? 21