The census of agriculture is one of the key pillars of a national statistical system, and in many developing countries it is often the only means of producing statistical information on the structure and other relevant aspects of the agriculture sector. Moreover, it is the only data collection instrument that produces statistical information on farms at the lowest geographical level and therefore it is an essential source of information for governments and decision-makers in member countries. Since the founding of FAO in 1945, the decennial World Programme for the Census of Agriculture (WCA) has supported countries to carry out their national agricultural censuses using standard international concepts, definitions and methodologies. The World Programme for the Census of Agriculture 2020 (WCA 2020) is the tenth decennial programme, and is expected to provide the basis for implementation of agricultural censuses in FAO member countries between 2016 and 2025.