From the field

In an exclusive AgroSpectrum interview, Jairo Castano of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations explains how the World Programme for the Census of Agriculture 2030 will modernize agricultural censuses, strengthen data-driven policymaking, and support progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Quality statistics are key to informing decisions, policies and investments that address issues such as food security, malnutrition as well as sustainable and resilient agrifood systems. FAO, as part of its core mandate, is committed to collecting, analysing, interpreting and disseminating these statistics. 

Measuring and monitoring SDG 12.3.1.a, the Food Loss Index, is complex and requires multiple measurement efforts to cover key food groups and stages along the agrifood chain. In this context, Mexico stands out as a regional reference by implementing a pilot exercise that approximates the calculation of this indicator using available information.

In preparation for Tuvalu’s first National Crops and Livestock Census, FAO is providing technical and methodological supports in collaboration with the Ministry of Natural Resources Development, Central Statistics Division and the Pacific Community (SPC). Today, a training is kick-started to equip field staff with the knowledge, skills and tools to collect accurate and high-quality census data.

In a landmark achievement for agricultural innovation, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has clinched the coveted ICT Innovator of the Year Award 2nd runner up at the 2025 Zimbabwe ICT Excellence Awards. The recognition honours FAO’s groundbreaking initiative, Earth Observation for Agricultural Statistics (EOSTAT), which is revolutionizing crop monitoring systems and strengthening national capacity for data-driven agrifood systems transformation.

In this interview, FAO Chief Statistician and Director of Statistics Division, Mr José Rosero Moncayo, talks about the key expectations arising from the work of the 29th Commission for Agricultural Statistics. He explains that understanding the impact of a lack of statistics is crucial for formulating agricultural policies, and provides details on the important '50x2030 Initiative'.

Blog by Maksat Turlubaev – Head of the Bureau of National statistics, Agency for Strategic planning and reforms of the Republic of Kazakhstan 

Cambodia Embraces Digital Farming to Boost Sustainability and Resilience

Blog by Andrew Johnny, Statistician General, Statistics Sierra Leone

Zimbabwe has taken a major stride in modernizing its agricultural statistics systems through the integration of Earth Observation (EO) technologies. This week, the country is hosting a training workshop organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), bringing together national experts for a hands-on training aimed at enhancing the country’s capacity to generate timely, accurate, and reliable crop type, crop acreage and crop yield statistics.