Public Support Sought on 2012 Census of Agriculture, Fisheries

The NSO will be conducting the census to come up with updated basic statistics on the two essential sectors of our society, agriculture and fisheries, Provincial Statistics Officer Engr. Naser S. Usman said in a in a consultative forum on September 12.

We are very optimistic that with your attendance, participation and active involvement, we shall have a very fruitful sharing of ideas and inputs which will be of paramount importance for us to have a very successful conduct of the 2012 census of agriculture and fisheries, he told participants.

Forty-three participants from government, non-government and peoples organizations attended the forum.

Mr Usman has encouraged organizations to partner with NSO for the census to enhance the level of receptiveness and cooperation of the people towards the census.

He said some activities could be initiated by the organization, like undertake publicity and information drive among members of their respective organizations and clients and or beneficiaries through announcements of the conduct of the 2012 CAF in organization-sponsored form, mobile local leaders to explain the importance of the census and the need for the cooperation of the public and sponsor local census awareness events for farmers, fishermen and other persons engaged in agriculture and fisheries.

Mr Usman admitted that the agency was allocated with limited funds to conduct the census, but assured the public that the data to be gathered out of the census will still be reliable, accurate and will speak of the state of the countries agriculture and fisheries sector.

Adelaida S. Cuarte, NSO-9 officer-in-charge and regional director, insisted on the reliability of their census on CAF, saying that hired enumerators will be trained and that all barangays will be involved, thus this forum is conducted.

As an agriculture country, data and information needs of economic development planners and policy makers can be provided by the results of the census, she explained, adding that up-to-date information about the sector shall enable policy makers to respond to the challenges and opportunities prevailing in the sector.

Provincial Statistician Pedro P. Baradi Jr. presented the data items, possible questions and categories of the 2012 CAF.

He explained that the 2012 CAF will use the census modular approach recommended by World Program for the Census of Agriculture (WCA) 2010, that is, with a core census module and census supplementary modules on selected themes. The 2012 CAF will also have a barangay module.

Mr Baradi said the census hopes to determine the structural characteristics of agriculture and fishery sectors. The data collected will also provide sampling frame for the conduct of census supplementary modules on irrigation and cropping pattern, livestock and poultry, aquaculture and fisheries and other statistical undertakings.

He announced that all households will be visited by census enumerators from February to March 2013. Establishments in agriculture and fisheries will likewise be visited by census supervisors during the same period. The reference period for the 2012 CAF, he said, is January to December 2012.

The NSO April 2012 Labor Force Survey said that agriculture remains as an important sector of the economy as it provided 33 percent of the total employment. The NSO Foreign Trade Statistics show that the total agro-based products accounted for 7.1 per cent of the total exports of the Philippines in April 2012. About 12.5 per cent of the gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2012 came from the agriculture, hunting, fishery and forestry industries.

Since 1970, and every 10 years thereafter, the Census of Agriculture has been conducted together with the Census of Fisheries, collectively now known as Census of Agriculture and Fisheries (CAF). The 2012 CAF will be the sixth of a series of decennial census on agriculture and the fifth on fisheries in the country.