From the field

Blog by Michael Rahija, Regional Statistician, FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

 

Thailand has taken a significant step toward enhancing forest data transparency by publishing data on their national forest inventory (NFI) in the Food and Agriculture Microdata (FAM) Catalogue, developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). This achievement highlights Thailand’s commitment to sustainable forest management, climate action and international cooperation.

Enumerators gather a wide range of statistics, supporting policy makers in making decisions to help agriculture better meet people’s nutritional and livelihood needs.

The 50x2030 Initiative to Close the Agricultural Data Gap aims to support agricultural data collection, processing, and dissemination efforts of National Statistical Offices and Ministries of Agriculture. The Initiative responds to the demand for more and higher quality agricultural data, in view...

Agriculture is a cornerstone of Viet Nam’s economy, employing tens of millions, contributing significantly to the national GDP, and ensuring food security and rural livelihoods. However, traditional farming practices and limited access to real-time data, constrain productivity, climate resilience, and resource efficiency. As digital technologies reshape global agrifood systems, Viet Nam stands at a critical juncture to leverage data-driven decision-making to enhance its agricultural sector. 

Cambodia accelerated the digital transformation of its agricultural sector through a high-level workshop and training in Phnom Penh, where policymakers, experts and development partners showcased AI, satellite data and digital systems to modernize farming, enhance climate resilience and drive sustainable, data-driven growth.

FAO won the SDG Custodian Agency Prize at the seventh annual GEO SDG Awards, which recognizes the productivity, innovation, novelty and exemplary efforts in the use of Earth observations to support sustainable development.

Forests across Asia and the Pacific region cover 740 million hectares, accounting for 18 percent of global forest cover. These forests are not only critical for the livelihoods of more than 450 million people, but also play a critical economic role, with annual trade in primary forest products surpassing USD 90 billion. 

Accurate data is key to achieving FAO’s mandate and driving progress toward the SDGs. Yet, despite its critical importance, official data is not always readily available and may be difficult to obtain due to limited statistical capacities, as well as insufficient funding and dissemination processes.

Mongolia has taken a major step towards ensuring greater forest data transparency with the publication of the country’s Multipurpose National Forest Inventory (NFI) and make it available to the global audiences through the Food and Agriculture Microdata (FAM) Catalogue, developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).