The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ethiopian Central Statistical Agency (CSA), organized the 22nd Session of African Commission on Agricultural Statistics (AFCAS) meeting in Addis‐Ababa, Ethiopia from 30th November 2011 to 3rd December 2011.

A highlight of the opening ceremony of this year’s AFCAS meeting on 30 November 2011 was the Africa launch of the FAO annual flagship report the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) 2010‐2011, which focuses on“Women in Agriculture – Closing the gender gap for development. The launch formed part of the AFCAS opening session, given the importance having reliable and up‐to‐date statistical data required to document and close the gender gap in agriculture.The launch included a High Level Panel Session, chaired by Ms. Maria Helena Semedo, FAO Assistant‐Director‐General and Regional Representative for Africa and panellists, State Minister of Agriculture of Ethiopia, H.E. Ato Wondirad Mandefro; Mr. Seydou Traore, Director, National Institute of Statistics, Mali; and Ms. Thoko Ruzvidzo, Director, African Centre for Gender and Social Development Division of the Economic Commission for Africa. The panel thus presented perspectives from a governance, international development, and national statistics perspective and provided a stimulated discussion on “Data needs to reduce gender gap in agricultural development.”