Romania is providing technical and financial support to the GCP/MOL/003/ROM FAO project in Moldova on the validation and dissemination of data from the country’s first General Agricultural Census. The project is close to completion. It resulted in reliable, up-to-date and internationally comparable data on agriculture for planning and evaluation. With the help of the project, the census established a database which will serve as foundation for a sound system of periodic collection of agriculture statistics, comparable at the international level, especially at the European Union (EU) level.

The project has enhanced the capacity of the country’s National Bureau of Statistics to collect, analyze and disseminate key statistical information on the agricultural sector, and has strengthened coordination between the Bureau and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry. The FAO team working on the census with the Moldovan counterparts included a number of Romanian experts whose technical inputs were invaluable for completion of the tasks. The census data, now being released, will enhance evidence-based policy making in the agricultural sector.

Moldova is now aiming to establish an integrated system of agricultural surveys for timely production and dissemination of accurate food security and agricultural statistics.