1. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 1 ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT ORGANISATION DE COOPÉRATION ET DE DEVELOPMENT ÉCONOMIQUES Access to micro-data: Experience from using data for agricultural policy analysis Catherine Moreddu OECD, Agriculture Directorate OECD conference: Assessing the feasibility of micro-data access, Luxembourg, 26-27 October 2006

2. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 2 A users point of view The Directorate for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries of the OECD: –analyses policy issues –evaluates current policies and policy reform wrt to their objectives and to reform principles (including equity)

3. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 3 Why disaggregated information is needed for agricultural policy analysis? Policies (policy reform) have distributional impacts, some have distributional objectives Increasing interest in these issues: increasing heterogeneity in farm households, payments more visible, targeting, etc. More quantitative approaches (econometrics) Many government-related institutes are engaged in this type of work Need for disaggregated (micro-level) data

4. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 4 Recent examples Income study: distribution of support and impact on the distribution of income Decoupling: estimation of the impact of different types of payments on farmers production decisions (risk aversion) Agricultural policy and trade reform: potential effects at global, national and household levels

5. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 5 Different types of analysis Data analysis Econometric and modelling analysis

6. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 6 Approaches Income study: –LIS: Frequency of low-income households –Customised FADN groups (quartiles, deciles): distribution of support Decoupling: –Consultant with access to micro data (FADN, insurance data) to do the analysis Agricultural policy and trade reform: –Consultants with access to survey data, or –Consultants to merge existing data sources into a database to do the analysis

7. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 7 Data issues Coverage (off-farm income, small farms) Frequency and timeliness (farm income variability) Panel Small number of farm households in general surveys Confidentiality (limits access and matching of data sources) Political sensitivity (income)

8. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 8 Lessons It is crucial for agricultural policy analysis to be able to use disaggregated information Regular analysis at micro-level is beyond AGR resource availabilities National research institutes would be better placed: –Access to data –Technical expertise –Country knowledge Network

9. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 9 First phase: 2007-08 OECD (Secretariat and delegates) to suggest the type of policy issues, which will determine: –the scope and data needs: OECD countries, farm or rural households? –experts and institutes with adequate access to data and expertise, and interested in collaboration OECD role: organiser, synthesis reports Network expert meetings to identify: –priority research issues –Data availability –Analytical approach –Time table

10. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 1010 Initial thoughts on objectives Identify data availability: Comparing definitions and availability of data concerning the economic and financial status of farm households in OECD Member countries Undertake research based on those data, e.g. –Evaluate the income situation of farm households –distributional consequences of agricultural and trade policy reform –linkages between the diversification of income sources and the rural economy Allow flexibility in analytical approaches: no one size fits all

11. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 1 Your views are welcome on: Attractivity for partners Feasibility Institutional setting: role for the OECD, relationships with existing networks, incentives

12. Directorate for Food, Agriculture, and Fisheries 1212 Thank you for your attention