PBS adopts UNFAO guidelines to conduct 7th Agricultural Census

February 21, 2024 (MLN): The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has integrated the three Agricultural, Livestock, and Agricultural Machinery Censuses to conduct in one go as 7th Agricultural Census as per international best practices under the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO) guidelines.

The process re-engineering strategy has been planned to enumerate the big holdings (NCH) throughout the country.

Moreover, effective and efficient management of human and financial resources has been ensured for 7th Agricultural Census for provision of credible statistics for policy planning.

PBS has established 157 Census Support Centers for seamless execution and management of field operations.

Provincial Stakeholders Viz. Board of Revenue, Agriculture (Extension), Livestock, Provincial Bureau of Statistics, Crop Reporting Services will support for Field Operation, Supervision and Monitoring.

It is crucial to note here that a budget of Rs650 million has been estimated for the 7th Agricultural Census.

After the successful completion of the 7th Population & Housing Census (1st Ever Digital Census), PBS has planned to conduct the 7th Agricultural Census throughout the country as an integrated digital count of agriculture resources livestock, and machinery as per best international practices and guidelines of the UNFAO, an overdue activity.

The 7th Agricultural Census will provide benchmark data for policy planning to fulfil the food and fiber needs of more than 241 million populace of the country. For broader involvement and wider acceptability, PBS initiated engagements with Partner Organizations and Provincial Stakeholders Viz. Board of Revenue, Agriculture (Extension), Livestock, Provincial Bureau of Statistics, Crop Reporting Services etc.

The participation of stakeholders helped in diversified perspectives, identifying needs, and addressing the shortcomings and potential issues for provision of reliable data in agriculture as per requirements and avoiding any inconvenience during field operation of the Agricultural Census.

The process started with the meeting of all provincial focal persons (SMBRs) at PBS HQ Islamabad on 20th December 2023.

Afterward, a series of Provincial meetings started, first provincial meeting was held at Provincial Census Coordination Center (P3C), PBS, Karachi, for Sindh province on 1st February, 2024, the second provincial meeting was held on February 15, 2024 at P3C, PBS, Provincial Office, Punjab, Lahore.

The third provincial meeting held on February 20, 2024 at Peshawar. Muhammad Sarwar Gondal, Member (SS/RM), senior officers from PBS HQ Islamabad, provincial office Peshawar, and senior officers from Provincial Departments of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also attended the meeting.

It was highlighted that the economy of Pakistan depends upon agriculture and agriculture has a 23% share in the GDP, and is providing employment to the 37% of the labor force.

The Live Stock share in the agriculture is 64%, while independently Live Stock is contributing 14% to the GDP.

Therefore, the latest data on the agriculture sector is required for evidence-based policy planning while the Agricultural Census 2024 will be an authentic source in this regard.

He emphasized on the participation and cooperation of provincial stakeholders, for successful completion of the field operation for the 7th Agricultural Census. Muhammad Sarwar Gondal, Member (Support Services/IT), apprised in detail regarding the methodology, field operation plan, Media Strategy, and Budget requirements.

He informed that PBS is using meticulous integrated approach covering all three aspects of agriculture land, crops, livestock, and machinery which is also vetted by the FAO.

He also presented the schedule for field operation during September –October, 2024. It will be the First Integrated Digital exercise in the field of agriculture for data collection in Pakistan through optimum utilization of available resources.

The Digital aspects like Tablet based data collection, use of digitized maps of Mouzas/Blocks, SMS Gateway, Call Center, were elaborated in detail.

It was informed that for smooth and efficient field operations, Various Working Groups for Complaint Management and provision of information have been constituted. Further 157 Census Support Centers (CSCs) have been established equipped with digital technology at each Deputy Commissioner’s Office.

The divisional and district census coordinators have already been deployed by PBS at each CSC for technical guidance, facilitation, and operational management. Similarly, 157 Training Venues having facilities of multimedia, internet, sound system, laptops, printers have been shortlisted.

Training will be imparted using ICT materials with interactive videos/audios by the expert trainers to ensure standardization of the census concepts. PBS has also planned for process re-engineering to enumerate the big holdings (NCH) throughout the country.

The provincial stakeholders appreciated the efforts of PBS and ensured the cooperation for successful conduct of this task of National importance.

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