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 Economic and Social Development :: Activities
Activities listed on this page:
Capacity building and technical assistance in food and agriculture statistics
Disaster management for sustainable agriculture


Capacity building and technical assistance in food and agriculture statistics

Twentieth Session of the Asia and Pacific Commission on Agricultural Statistics (APCAS)

The twentieth session of APCAS was organized by FAO in New Delhi, India from 20 to 24 September 2004 with attendance of 86 delegates and observers from 17 member countries (out of 24).

FAO direct technical assistance

Assistance was provided to Indonesia on livestock statistics; to Myanmar on preparation for an agricultural census; to Tonga on the development of a sustainable agricultural statistics system; to Viet Nam on the analysis of the agricultural census and strengthening of a food security information system with funding from an Italian trust fund project; to Cambodia on agricultural productivity improvement; and to Bangladesh on crop yield forecasting and agro-meteorology.

Strengthening the Regional Data Exchange System

The ongoing regional project has been extended to: Iran through the Agricultural Survey Improvement Programme that would establish a methodology to produce, twice a year, basic national and provincial level data for the agricultural sector, including crop forecasts and post-harvest crop estimates, livestock composition and information on economic and social aspects of the agricultural sector; Malaysia through assistance to the Agricultural Census 2006 with the goal to improve the performance of the agricultural sector and to ensure food security for all through the development of a system of reliable, relevant and timely food and agricultural statistics; and Timor-Leste through the development of an agricultural statistics system that would provide reliable and timely statistics on food, agriculture and livestock required for effective planning and monitoring of the agricultural sector so that policy and administrative decisions can be supported by objective and accurate information.

Workshops and technical sessions

Workshops and technical sessions have been conducted in support of regional capacity building activities, including: Data for Food Security in the Framework of an Integrated System of Agricultural Statistics conducted in Bangkok in November 2002 with 20 participants from Asian countries; Expert Consultation on Livestock Statistics in Bangkok in July 2003 with eight experts from the region providing input for the improvement of livestock statistics by reviewing FAO recommendations and national methods for collecting data, particularly for nomadic and semi-nomadic livestock; FAO/World Bank Workshop on Strengthening Agricultural Statistics in the Pacific in Support of Food Security and Poverty Reduction Strategies and Programmes in Nadi, Fiji in November 2003; and the Workshop on the Use of Major Databases and their Applications in Support of Agricultural and Rural Development Policies in Bangkok in May 2004 for senior statisticians and policy-makers from countries in the region. Technical review sessions have been scheduled concurrently with meetings of the focal points of the Regional Data Exchange System project. An expert consultation in Analysis and Dissemination of Census and Survey Data took place in July 2005.

Disaster management for sustainable agriculture

Workshop on Reducing Food Insecurity Associated with Natural Disasters in Asia and the Pacific

The workshop took place from 27 to 28 January 2005 in Bangkok to develop a set of policy guidelines harmonizing the ongoing initiatives at international, national and regional levels along five themes, namely: (i) reducing vulnerability through sustainable agriculture; (ii) developing guidelines, enforcing laws and regulations; (iii) strengthening early warning, vulnerability information and forecasting systems; (iv) collaborative partnerships and institutional arrangements; and (v) quantitative risk and impact assessment (see workshop report).

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