Chapter Six: Evaluation of Programme 2.2.2 (Food and Agricultural Information) – Activities related to agricultural statistics in the context of FAOSTAT²⁶

I. INTRODUCTION

272. FAO’s work on the collection and dissemination of statistical information on food and agriculture represents a core element of the Organization’s mandate: Article I of the Constitution requires the Organization to collect, analyse, interpret and disseminate information relating to nutrition, food and agriculture.

273. The statistical system established and maintained by FAO is characterized by global coverage based on national statistical data from member countries, as well as data from other sources, including universities, industry and other international organizations. FAO data are used both within the Organization and beyond it: other organizations, governments, commercial companies, farmers’ associations and research institutions all need credible, timely, up-to-date and appropriate information as a basis for rational decision-making.

274. A number of issues influence the quality of FAO’s statistical activities while, at the same time, there is a growing demand for new or additional information and analyses in response to emerging international concerns. In addition, FAO’s core statistical database, the Corporate Database for Substantive Statistical Data (FAOSTAT), has been affected by technical and data quality problems. Changes in the Organization’s information management and dissemination policy have affected the operations of “traditional” statistics units and, to some extent, their resource allocations.

275. The present review has been undertaken as a desk study by the FAO Evaluation Service, with the assistance of short external consultancies. Its purpose is to take critical stock of FAO statistical activities, in particular to assess the overall relevance and performance of such activities in meeting user needs for reliable statistical data, and to identify key issues and lessons. Among its aims is to contribute to ongoing in-house consultations on appropriate solutions and long-term commitments concerning FAOSTAT.

II. OVERVIEW OF FAO’S STATISTICAL WORK

276. FAOSTAT comprises data on 800 agricultural commodities and 250 fishery and forestry products, covering 230 countries and territories, including their aggregates at the regional and subregional levels. The system covers time series data on demography, agricultural, fishery and forestry production (agricultural resources and inputs, production outputs, external trade, utilization, commodity balances and prices), trade flows (crops, livestock, fishery and forestry primary and derived products, agricultural inputs and machinery) and other databases on selected subjects, such as agricultural censuses, economic accounts and development aid. It also includes aggregates and indicators derived by FAO for analytical purposes. The main statistical data sets are maintained in FAOSTAT as part of the World Agricultural Information Centre (WAICENT).

277. In FAO, prime responsibility for statistics rests with the Statistics Division (ESS), which gathers, analyses and disseminates statistical data on world food and agriculture, provides advice and assistance to FAO members and supervises statisticians in the Organization’s Regional and Subregional Offices. For the fishery and forestry sectors, statistical work is handled separately by smaller units in the fisheries and forestry departments, i.e. the Fishery Information, Data and Statistics Unit (FIDI) and the Forestry Planning and Statistics Branch (FONS), both of which perform functions similar to those of ESS in their respective sectors. The main features of these three units are summarized in Table 1.

TABLE 1: Main programmes and units responsible for statistical activities²⁷

278. The main statistical series produced by these units are contained in FAOSTAT, which is also where most institutional collaboration between ESS and the statistical units takes place. In addition, the Fisheries and Forestry Departments develop and maintain their own databases – FISHSTAT Plus and FORIS – which contain more detailed and/or specific information that is not covered by FAOSTAT. Many other units also maintain their own specialized databases in their respective technical subject areas, with varying degrees of interface with the main system, and new initiatives that crucially depend on statistical inputs that have come into being, such as FIVIMS.

279. The overall objective of statistical work is essentially twofold: i) to provide users within and outside FAO with timely, reliable and comparable statistical information to support the monitoring and analysis of the food and agriculture (including fishery and forestry) situation and issues; and ii) to enhance the capacity of national governments to develop and use their statistical systems. These objectives cover four major functions, given below.

• Norms and standards function. FAO develops and maintains statistical definitions, classifications, standards and methodologies and coordinates these with other intergovernmental agencies in order to facilitate mutually compatible approaches to data collection, processing and analysis. As well as producing numerous methodological publications, FAO leads or participates in the regular coordination meetings of regional and/or thematic statistical commissions, committees and working groups. Collaboration among national and international statisticians is also encouraged through support to networking.
• Data compilation function. This includes both gathering data and processing them for inclusion in FAO statistical series. To varying degrees, FAO is involved in promoting the collection and use of statistics; collating various statistics from countries, regional bodies and industry (e.g. for marketing and trade data); undertaking first-level checks of the data received for internal consistency or anomalous trends; investigating anomalies with the countries concerned; and publishing statistics on the various aspects of agriculture, fisheries and forestry. Statistics supplied by national authorities are routinely adjusted when mistakes are obvious, better data are available from other bodies or countries agree with FAO estimates.
• Service function (FAO’s provision and dissemination of current, reliable and relevant statistics). Since 1950, FAO has been responsible for providing the framework and guidance for the decennial programme of the World Agricultural Censuses. FAO started to produce analytical studies of global concern in 1946 with the First World Food Survey. These surveys are published at regular intervals and serve as a basis for discussions in key fora. Other outputs include statistical bulletins, circulars, compendiums, food balance sheets, studies and analyses, and various other publications.
• Development function. In order to help build capacity for improved information management at the national and regional levels, FAO customizes standard methodologies and generic software tools for statistics gathering and processing by countries, according to their needs and statistical setups, and organizes regular training on statistical methodologies and practices. In addition, it supports countries and other partners through direct advice and field projects. In some cases, FAO also provides basic equipment that is indispensable for the processing of statistical data, such as computer hardware and software.

280. Table 2 shows the RP resources (budget and expenditure) for the main statistical programmes from 1996 to 2001. The figures are not always strictly comparable owing to changes in the programme structure.

281. Staff resources in ESS declined significantly as a consequence of resource cuts and the transfer of functions to other units. Most ESS staff losses were caused by retirement without replacement, while several posts were transferred to other units, mostly in connection with the establishment of WAICENT. One direct effect of this was the discontinuation of producer price statistics in 1998 (the most recent price data in FAOSTAT refer to 1995).

TABLE 2. RP budget and expenditure for the Statistics Programmes (in US$'000)

282. During the review period, the Field Programme for Statistics has comprised 99 projects for a total value of US$44.0 million. ESS leads the other units in terms of both number of field projects (76 out of 99 projects) and budget volume (74 percent). FIDI’s 15 projects accounted for 9 percent of resources, and FONS’s eight projects for 17 percent. In geographic terms, the Africa Region’s 46 projects received the largest share of resources, i.e. 41 percent (for fishery projects, the share was 46 percent, for ESS projects 43 percent, and for forestry projects 31 percent). Asia’s 23 projects received 29 percent of resources, Europe’s one project (in forestry) received 6 percent, Latin America’s 15 projects received 8 percent, and the Near East’s ten projects received 10 percent. Four interregional projects received 5 percent of resources.

283. In terms of project numbers and funding sources, TCP funds the largest number of projects (64 out of 99), although the 16 projects of the TF/Government Cooperative Programme (GCP) receive a greater share of budget volume (56 percent, compared with TCP’s 29 percent). TF/UTF’s 11 projects received 11 percent of resources, and UNDP’s eight projects (all in Africa), 4 percent.

III. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

General

284. FAO’s advocacy work and support to decision-making and policy work are predicated on the availability of reliable and relevant data. Statistics are indispensable to the review and monitoring of the progress of nations through such documents as The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA), The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA), The State of the World’s Forests (SOFO) and The State of Food Insecurity in the World (SOFI). Likewise, World Food Summit (WFS) targets and commitments need to be verified through statistics. Other recent initiatives aimed at furthering anti-hunger policies, such as FIVIMS, need statistics to locate and enumerate food-insecure and vulnerable people.

285. Generally, FAO’s Governing Bodies seem inclined to accord priority status to statistical activities. However, in the context of the overall budgetary constraints, the sharp declines in regular resources are a major issue for all the three units engaged in statistics. Their response requires a combination of improvements to the cost-effectiveness of their working arrangements, better integration and coordination among the concerned units, and the development of a strategic vision within which fewer priority activities are identified so as to allow concentration of limited resources. This would entail some difficult decisions.

286. For ESS, the demand for more and better data has coincided with decreasing resource levels, the effects of which have only partly been offset by the delegation of certain functions (mainly related to information dissemination) to other units. An important element in the Organization’s data sets – agricultural producer prices – has not been updated since 1998. Reactivating outdated data sets is generally not easy because the direct relationship with countries’ technical services has been lost, there is a lack of memory within ESS about the scrutiny and imputation of missing data, and the gap in the time series is too long to enable estimation. Given the existing resources in ESS, it is unlikely that the service concerned (ESSA) will be able to process different sets of price data, e.g. monthly prices, wholesale prices, etc.

287. The need for improved statistical coverage and services is recognized by the statistical units themselves, and is being addressed with varying degrees of effectiveness. Generally, in response to data users’ requirements, FAO statistics are moving from the reporting of simple statistics to the reporting of value-added statistics and indicators – the scope and coverage are expanding from physical statistics (production, trade, inputs) to economic statistics (prices, incomes, gender-disaggregated, environment). Information for users has improved with the provision of metadata and the introduction of the ABCDQ data quality project. FAO statistics have become more widely accessible through the Internet, and more value has been added through the provision of background information (e.g. metadata). Similarly, a comprehensive Fisheries Global Information System (FIGIS) is being developed by FIDI, and the corporate database is planned to be upgraded by FAOSTAT2, which is expected to improve the accessibility and user-friendliness of FAO statistics. A worrying aspect in this regard is the substantial number of statistical offices in developing countries that have no or only limited access to the Internet.

288. The Medium-term Plan 2004-2009 demonstrates the Organization’s intention to address the limitations of the current FAOSTAT system (with the planned launch of FAOSTAT2 in 2005) and to improve the analytical depth of its statistical work: PE 222P1 (Agricultural Resources and Income Statistics) is expected to provide statistical data on population, labour force, prices, incomes and other socio-economic variables. However, this raises questions about the availability of additional resources, particularly for FAOSTAT2. Similarly, it is foreseen that PE 222A2 (FAO/World Bank/USDA Initiative for Agricultural Statistics in Africa) will run out in biennium 2004-2005 – to be succeeded by TP 222A6 starting in 2006 – and national statistical capacity building has remained a relatively minor point under PE 222P3 (Agricultural Statistics Development). Of the regions previously identified as problematic (such as the Near East, countries in transition or resource-poor developing countries), only Africa has been earmarked for specific assistance.

International commitment to statistical quality

289. The value of FAO’s global statistics ultimately depends on the national statistical systems’ ability to reach and/or maintain acceptable statistical standards, but there are problems with the quality of data in many countries and regions. Providing adequate data and assessments is most problematic for least-developed countries, which have inadequate financial and technical resources. The African Commission on Agricultural Statistics noted in 2001 that continuing funding constraints were being experienced by most African countries, sizeable government funding was the exception rather than the rule, the analysis of agricultural census data continued to be hampered by the lack of adequately trained staff and donors, dissatisfied with national statistical organizations, were increasingly supporting uncoordinated data gathering activities implemented by NGOs outside the official system.

290. Inadequate reporting by countries can take many forms: inflated estimates from major producing countries threaten the credibility of FAO’s production statistics and distort world and regional aggregates (as in the case of fishery statistics); underestimated or incomplete production data on small-scale and subsistence farming and fishing (as well as use of forest products by local communities) understate the importance of these sectors and result in a lack of consideration in policy-making; and late reporting diminishes the data value for users. Certain countries report their figures in ways that do not conform to FAO guidelines and recommendations as regards concepts, definitions and coverage of the data. Such countries apply inaccurate conversion factors, extraction rates and similar ancillary information; assign dubious food nutrient factors to commodities; and give questionable figures on the utilization of various crops for feed and industrial purposes and waste.

291. FAO has historically supported the creation of in-country surveying, particularly the development of census capability aimed at reporting data with a high degree of accuracy and putting less emphasis on timing. During the period covered, assistance was provided through RP work and field projects, but many countries have not been able to maintain or develop adequate statistical capacity. At the same time, the increasing demand for data that are more current is not always coupled with acceptance of the potentially lower reliability of such data, and this poses a dilemma for resource-poor statistical units.

292. Limited support to countries has been provided through the Field Programme. Generally, projects backstopped by ESSS, FIDI and FONS during the period under review focused on agricultural censuses/surveys, ongoing systems of agricultural statistics (strengthening the institutional and technical capacity of national statistical systems), agricultural statistics for food security and early warning information systems, statistical data processing, and statistical databases. The approaches have usually included developing and/or introducing improved and standardized methodologies for data collection, processing, analysis, dissemination and sharing; providing the necessary equipment, and supplies (mostly computer software and hardware), as well as technical assistance; and staff training (including workshops, study tours, etc.).

293. Evaluation reports and desk reviews indicate that most projects contributed significantly to strengthening the institutional and technical capacity of national statistical services. FAO support (with funding from Italy) to the Food and Agricultural Statistics Centres in China is one of the most successful examples; others include support to agricultural census in Togo, the European Commission-FAO Partnership Programme on forestry statistics, and Japan-funded support to agriculture and fishery statistics in Asia and the Pacific (in cooperation with parallel Japanese bilateral aid). However, with a few exceptions, the sustainability of the results achieved with assistance remains a key issue. Recurrent findings are that more human resources are deemed necessary to strengthen the statistical offices’ capacities and that continued assistance during the follow-up phase is desirable. In this connection, it is a source of concern that much of the technical assistance in statistical development has to rely on TCP projects with relatively limited resources and duration.

294. While improving national statistical capacity is a long-term goal, the Organization should also consider practical shorter-term approaches, such as reducing the reporting burden on countries (through agencies agreeing on joint reporting formats); and facilitating the improved collection of existing data in countries, which would require greater collaboration among FAO units, including the regional statisticians, and national actors engaged in statistical activities.

Recommendations

295. During the past decade there has been insufficient appreciation of the strategic importance of national statistical systems. This situation seems to have changed in recent years with the international community’s growing recognition of the problem. As improved data quality and reporting are crucial to the development of effective food security and poverty alleviation strategies, it is recommended that the Organization commit adequate resources to its statistical activities and enhance its advocacy role for mobilizing international support to national statistical capacities. In particular, more concerted efforts should be made to attract extrabudgetary resources under new donor partnership programmes in support of priority statistical activities of a normative nature, especially those directed to food security and poverty alleviation. Similarly, FAO should work with its partners to ensure that international undertakings stipulating progress monitoring are underpinned by the provision of adequate resources for countries to produce and report the necessary information, including support to capacity building for this purpose.

296. Given the deteriorating state of food and agriculture statistics in many countries, it is recommended that FAO explore and undertake several measures to support these countries in improving their statistical capacity.

1. Extrabudgetary resources should be mobilized to support the development of statistical capacity in countries committed to this endeavour. In designing such support, particular attention should be given to achieving practical results in a sustainable way. This should focus on innovative and cost-effective ways for developing capacity, for example, by concentrating on selected priority areas or introducing simplified methods and approaches (e.g. in survey methods and data analysis) through pilot projects and/or training aimed at critical bottlenecks. Similarly, greater efforts could be made to coordinate assistance to conventional statistical capacity development with that provided to new information systems development, such as for food security and poverty alleviation. All such support should take into account the limited financial and human resources and the institutional weaknesses.
2. Measures for facilitating the transmission of data to FAO and reducing the reporting burden should be expanded. This would include greater person-to-person contact between FAO officers and their national counterparts, through workshops and country visits, in order to achieve a better understanding of the procedures and their respective roles and responsibilities. At the same time, FAO units involved in gathering statistics should streamline the data collection and reporting process by adjusting the scope and/or frequency of questionnaires for country reporting, as well as by promoting joint questionnaires among FAO units and with other agencies and by encouraging joint surveys at the country level.
3. Many organizations and scientists at the local, national and regional levels could make valuable contributions to the collection of agricultural statistics. So far, this source has been underexploited, mainly because of FAO’s emphasis on official sources. Efforts should be made to develop more contacts with complementary data producers in order to tap these additional data sources.
4. Countries frequently use coding systems and methodological approaches that do not conform to international conventions. FAO should promote and support the increased participation of subject-matter experts in statistical working parties and similar bodies. Countries should be urged to adopt such bodies’ recommendations regarding statistical definitions, norms and procedures.
5. While the proposed FAOSTAT2 will contribute to this last issue, ESS – in particular – should strengthen cooperation among its units by identifying the main weaknesses in country data reporting and by developing joint measures for addressing them.
6. The coordination and integration of statistical activities between ESS and the decentralized offices should be improved by allowing outposted officers to participate in discussions with headquarters colleagues through meetings at headquarters and through e-mail discussion fora.

Strengthening relations with member countries

297. The responses received to a questionnaire that was circulated to all member countries confirm the importance they attach to statistical activities. However, the relatively low response rate to the questionnaire (62 countries, about 30 percent of those surveyed) illustrates a problem: communication between FAO and member countries in the field of statistics appears to be cumbersome and slow. ESS complaints regarding countries’ non-reporting of statistics also reflect this.

298. Interaction between FAO and national statistical units is generally seen as satisfactory (between 50 and 61 percent of responses in this area); the highest number of unsatisfied responses (25 percent) concern “support and guidance mechanisms for providing assistance in statistical development activities”. Individual comments point to a lack of feedback and/or direct communication with the respective statistical unit, and to FAO’s lack of follow-up to earlier interventions. Regarding possible improvements in the Organization’s statistical activities, several responses highlight the need for coverage of additional data areas (mostly related to cost of production/price data, but also on specific products, land use issues, etc.). Many countries that lack information technology facilities requested assistance with computers and Internet access, as well as more direct communication with ESS.

299. The questionnaire responses indicate that governments are particularly appreciative of the following aspects of FAO statistics: technical quality (44 percent rated this as a strong feature), neutrality (39 percent) and relevance (38 percent). With some exceptions regarding trade and demographic data, FAO is almost invariably rated as being a better source for agricultural statistics than other organizations. However, some other aspects are viewed as unsatisfactory, including timeliness (23 percent of respondents), completeness in coverage (14 percent) and accuracy (13 percent).

300. In terms of prioritizing types of FAO support, there is a clear trend in favour of field project support in capacity building, while RP support such as workshops and seminars is appreciated but is not always seen as catering to respondents’ specific needs (many RP activities have a regional rather than a national focus).

301. As noted above, through project assistance, RP work and partnership arrangements, such as the FAO/World Bank/USDA statistical initiative, FAO has been able to provide assistance to several countries but, in general, its regional presence in terms of agricultural (and fisheries and forestry) statistics is fragmented. Some of the four regional/subregional statistician posts are vacant, or were vacant for long periods. In particular, countries in the Near East Region, Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Eastern Europe are hardly covered by statistical assistance activities. Several proposals to establish new regional posts (for ESS in the Near East Region and for fisheries in the Asia and the Pacific Region) have not yet been implemented, owing to resource constraints. These limitations affect the ability to develop new methods and techniques for use in national statistical systems, as well as the provision of direct support to member countries.

302. It should be noted that statistical capacity building in developing countries has mutual benefits. In the case of ESSB and ESSA, an increased involvement in training workshops and direct assistance to countries has helped to develop a more personal relationship with counterparts in national statistical units. The recent improvement in statistical reporting by African countries is partly attributed to this.

Recommendations

303. Unlike fisheries and forestry statisticians, ESS does not have any effective global-level links with member countries, except through the meetings that are jointly arranged from time to time by the UN-Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the EC and FAO. Thus, it is recommended that, as well as regional statistical meetings, a global forum should be established for institutionalized contacts with experts from member countries. This would have a number of benefits.

• It would address data quality and methodological problems through external peer review, and propose solutions (an approach that FAO has already applied in specific statistical fields through working parties, regional bodies and expert consultations).
• It would allow national statisticians to exchange information and opinions on their own problems, which would also be enlightening to FAO staff.
• It would increase the profile and transparency of FAO’s statistical work, help to inspire trust and improve quality.

Internal commitment to statistical quality

304. Among other issues, the working arrangements within ESS and between ESS and other statistical units in FAO have been the subject of a review of ESS undertaken by three external reviewers in late 2001/early 2002. Although the reviewers’ remarks have not been consolidated (i.e. some recommendations are mutually exclusive), their core findings appear valid.

1. Within the division, ESSB’s position and role are underrated vis-à-vis the other two units (which as services are hierarchically more important). Traditionally, the branch provides most of the division’s basic data products, which are of strategic importance to analytical and forecasting work, supply/utilization accounts and food balance sheets. In recent years, and especially in the context of development of FAOSTAT2, new skills beyond routine database maintenance are becoming increasingly important, including statistical database system development and statistical methods for food demand-supply analysis. The growing analytical demands faced by the branch, coupled with its coordination role within and outside ESS, are not reflected in its status.
2. There are coordination problems among the ESS units. For example, in some cases, ESSB and ESSS have each promoted different data codings in the same country, and other specific country-level activities have not always been coordinated. Furthermore, there has been little regular consultation/information exchange on their respective activities. However, there are signs that interaction is increasing: under the new divisional leadership, initiatives are being developed through which to arrive at a common understanding of issues and agreement on future approaches.
3. Regarding coordination and collaboration among ESS, FIDI and FONS, although contacts do exist (e.g. through data series in FAOSTAT, the use of common questionnaires, and the FAOSTAT2 Working Group), there is no formal mechanism for statistical units within FAO to interact and develop ways of improving the Organization’s data provision service. ESS external meetings are not normally attended by the other statistical units, and vice versa.

305. FAO has one of the least centralized statistical systems of any international agency and, although some interaction between statisticians and main data users takes place, not all actual and potential users within the Organization are being reached. In addition, there is no effective mechanism that would avoid the duplication of statistical activities and allow for the sharing of expertise and experience. This has ramifications for the selection and prioritization of FAO’s statistical work, as well as for quality control and statistical support. Another aspect is the quality of the statistical questionnaires that FAO distributes: of the 72 questionnaires sent out in 1998, only nine were from the Statistics Division. Although, in theory, statistical questionnaires sent out by other FAO units are vetted by ESS, this mandate is not exercised in practice.

306. A questionnaire survey of internal users confirms planning’s reliance on FAOSTAT statistics (including for analysis and outlook functions). However, most units would appreciate having additional data and information (economic data – e.g. prices and investment in agriculture; subnational statistics; metadata; and specific areas – e.g. land use) and have expressed concerns about the timeliness and quality of some data. Regarding user feedback, the existing mechanisms appear limited in effectiveness, although there is an Interdepartmental User Group on FAOSTAT2 (which includes members from outside the statistical units) and some regular informal contact between data users and ESS, especially ESSB. Several questionnaire comments refer to apparent incompatibilities among the definitions and codings used in FAO statistics. This indicates a need for the statistical units in FAO to focus specifically on statistical definitions – currently, one broad-spectrum Priority Area for Interdisciplinary Action (PAIA) deals with definitions, norms, methodologies and quality of information. This could address some data issues, but it appears to have too wide a scope to substitute for a body dealing specifically with statistical questions and has, in any case, not yet progressed beyond its initial stages. Thus, there is considerable scope for improving the support and advisory function to internal as well as external users – ESS has not been in a position to meet many specific requests for advice and information.

307. Another type of collaboration that needs attention relates to similar data compiled by different units. For example, the Commodities and Trade Division (ESC) collects data on food aid cereal exports by source and destination. It also generates data on production, consumption, trade and stocks for the early warning system (i.e. “current” data, which FAOSTAT does not include at the moment, but which it should include in order to ensure the more timely dissemination of data relevant for many private and public agents). Such data should be regarded as complementary, but in the past some discrepancies have occurred between the figures presented in ESC publications and those in FAOSTAT. Presumably, these discrepancies are the result of different time frames, circumstances and coverage, but they create difficulty for users because the database does not provide background information on the data. This issue also emphasizes the need for a common ESS and ESC approach for checking the accuracy of production, consumption, trade and stocks data.

308. All statistical units in FAO work with their respective country structures, working parties, regional commissions or other established bodies. Their common aims are to assess the status and trends of statistics, enhance the quality and transparency of statistical information, and build capacity, either directly by providing training and professional advice for the scientists involved, or indirectly through national initiatives emanating from regional bodies.

309. Particularly successful initiatives in collaboration with international organizations have included the ESS/World Bank/USDA initiative in Africa, and the FONS/European Commission partnership in Africa, Asia and Central and Latin America. Issues of quality control and improvement and the harmonization of reporting systems have been common priority concerns for many international organizations. Results include unified questionnaires: in particular FONS and FORM have succeeded in making a joint data reporting arrangement with the ECE, the Statistical Office of the European Communities (EUROSTAT) and the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO). ESS is discussing similar arrangements with some partner institutions. FIDI has a long tradition of international coordination, and where possible uses data from standard ESSB questionnaires.

310. Statistical development and data collection methods have to respond to data demands ranging from very general requirements to requests for fine-scale data. The increasing demand for more recent and more detailed data engenders a conflict between the advocacy of rigorous survey methodologies, which inevitably require time and resources, and the promotion of quick, rapid statistically non-verifiable methods. Within FAO, both approaches coexist, with ESS usually arguing in favour of statistical rigour. However, a choice sometimes has to be made between statistically orthodox methods and rapid appraisal methods, which may put less of a burden on existing national capabilities.

311. The challenges facing ESS are how to respond to these new approaches and how to determine where assistance to countries should continue to be geared towards comprehensive coverage (census) and where more limited, rapid survey methods would be more appropriate. Guidance to countries on the range of possible methodologies is required, but ESS lacks the resources for comprehensive methodology development.

312. The quality of statistical data is of paramount concern in terms of ensuring objective, reliable, consistent, harmonized and credible information, and the most critical area in FAO statistical activities appears to be the data compilation and analysis function. Given the weak national data of a significant number of countries, FAO statistical units have found it necessary to use secondary data and/or estimates when compiling their own official data. Gaps in national data include missing geographic areas and some economic or environmental factors. A related issue is transparency regarding the substitution of official data with FAO’s estimates: many users within and outside the Organization highlight the need for more explicit indications for the use of such estimates.

313. Statistical norms and concepts are also important for improving the quality of statistical data, and FAO has been performing adequately in this field by harmonizing the approaches that it and other relevant organizations follow. Growing analytical demands lead to more complex statistics, which often incorporate derived data. There is some concern that insufficient attention has been given to metadata (although this issue is being addressed in ESS) and – more important – that some original statistics have not been updated.

314. Another issue is the overinterpretation of available data. FAO’s World Food Surveys contain repeated cautionary words on the reliability of individual country data, while some documents intended for a wider readership attempt to put a figure on individual country developments regarding hunger and malnourishment. As demonstrated in the recent FAO-sponsored symposium on methodologies for estimating food insecurity (June 2002), experts have divergent views regarding sound methodologies. Thus, in order to maintain the Organization’s professional integrity and credibility, caution is needed to ensure that such statistics are used judiciously when presenting analyses that are based on methodologies with inherent limitations.

315. Recent international initiatives have brought attention to the issue of limited funding and have improved the situation, but it appears that the cost-effectiveness of having reliable data for planning and measuring development targets has not yet been convincingly demonstrated. This is likely to require more interaction between statisticians and the users of their outputs.

Recommendations

316. Discussions with experts and responses from the internal user and the country questionnaires point to an unmet demand for specific data sets and individual statistical applications. This, together with resource constraints, indicates a need to review the relative priorities of the current range of statistical activities within a strategic perspective. It is recommended that an international advisory panel on statistics be created to consider data needs and analytical approaches, improve responsiveness, gather intelligence about current data concerns and consolidate statistical methods. In particular, given the recent change in divisional leadership, the advisory panel should suggest ideas for the focus and scope of future FAO work in statistics in order to help the Organization to make the right selection of priority areas. Prioritization may include the decision to discontinue or reduce the frequency of updating certain statistical series, while at the same time developing partnerships with other statistical organizations that may be in a better position to cover these areas.

317. Within FAO, improving the quality and utility of its statistical information would require investments in some areas (e.g. FAOSTAT2), possible reduction in some areas and streamlining of the working arrangements among the units concerned as either the suppliers or the users of statistics. In this context, as well as the issue of FAOSTAT, the following are recommended.

1. Within ESS, the upgrading and strengthening of ESSB should be considered in view of its functions, which play a central role in maintaining and improving the largest component of the corporate database, including its dissemination. Given this role (which would grow under FAOSTAT2), its intensified cooperation with member countries and its staff size, ESSB should be upgraded from branch to service status.
2. Measures should be taken for more integrated operations among the three ESS units, including common approaches to ensuring data quality, responding to new statistical data demands and providing support to countries, in order to enhance the coherence and synergy within ESS programme functions.
3. In order to avoid confusion, duplication and misinterpretation, a coordinating committee on FAO statistics comprising all key units (ESS, FIDI, FONS, other statistics suppliers and main data users) should be formed to review methodologies, identify priority data needs and propose corrective action, where necessary. Its purpose would be to ensure that data collection, data processing and analysis, reporting and exchange practices are consistent and coherent and that statistical data meet the priority needs of member countries as well as of FAO and its partners. This forum should be led by ESS under the umbrella of the new PAIA on definitions, norms, methodologies and quality of information, whose functions will include the harmonization of statistical approaches and definitions.
4. Similarly, a central survey quality function (perhaps a Survey Quality Unit) should be established to review and improve all statistical data collection in FAO. As a minimum, the coordinating committee on FAO statistics should meet periodically to review survey, questionnaire and other data collection activities undertaken by all FAO units, with a view to ensuring their consistency with established quality standards.

FAOSTAT2

318. The dissemination of statistics is increasingly done through FAOSTAT, while distribution via CD-ROM and statistical yearbooks receives decreasing attention. However, at least under the current FAOSTAT system, there are certain shortcomings to the statistics: i) inconsistent access to databases; ii) inconsistent design; iii) instances of inappropriate presentation; iv) charts that do not represent the data in a statistically accurate manner; v) text presented as simple copies of printed documents; vi) evidence of a lack of quality control, including erroneous navigation; and vii) inability to provide full details for some statistics (e.g. fisheries).

319. Furthermore, many developing countries still rely on yearbooks as they lack access to FAO’s web site. Thus, they miss out on several new features that have been introduced in recent years and that are available only on the Internet.

320. The upgrading of FAO’s statistical database to FAOSTAT2 is considered essential for the Organization’s corporate statistical system. FAOSTAT2’s projected coming on-stream by 2005 depends on the payment of arrears or on extrabudgetary resources. This is clearly a fragile basis on which to base system improvements of strategic significance, and would seem to warrant the formulation of a contingency plan or a phased approach to the introduction of FAOSTAT2. The upgrading of FAO’s statistical database to FAOSTAT2 is considered essential for the Organization’s corporate statistical system. FAOSTAT2’s projected coming on-stream by 2005 depends on the payment of arrears or on extrabudgetary resources. This is clearly a fragile basis on which to base system improvements of strategic significance, and would seem to warrant the formulation of a contingency plan or a phased approach to the introduction of FAOSTAT2.

Recommendations

321. The planned new statistical database FAOSTAT2 is a necessary and essential development for FAO to meet the needs and challenges of coming years. It is strongly recommended that an adequate level of resources be secured for the successful development and operation of FAOSTAT2 by 2005. Given its ambitious nature, it is also recommended that FAOSTAT2 be designed and constructed in a modular fashion so that it can be put into operation gradually and will not be overwhelmed by its own complexity.

REPORT OF THE EXTERNAL REVIEW PANEL²⁸

Introduction

322. The external Peer Review Panel convened at FAO headquarters in Rome, from 4 to 6 November 2002. It was organized to review and comment on the Evaluation Report as an integral part of the evaluation process. In particular, the Panel was invited to comment on the quality of the evaluation in terms of analytical rigour and soundness of judgment. To validate the findings, conclusions and recommendations found in the draft report, the Panel held discussions with senior staff of the main statistical units within FAO, i.e. ESS, FIDI and FONS. It also met with internal data users, i.e. the Global Perspectives Studies Unit (ESDG), the Agricultural Policy Support Service (TCAS), the Basic Foodstuffs Service (ESCB) and the Global Information and Early Warning Service (ESCG).

323. The Panel agreed that the draft report prepared by PBEE was objective, balanced, well organized and comprehensive. The report gave a solid basis to review FAO’s work on collecting and disseminating statistical information on food and agriculture. It clearly described the details of FAO’s statistical programmes, its various functions, outputs and institutional arrangements. Information on budgets, as well as human resources being made available to the programmes, was also given.

324. In particular, the Panel wishes to highlight the following aspects of the conclusions: (i) the reporting of countries on statistics is inadequate in many ways, with direct impact on the quality and value of FAO’s databases of global statistics; (ii) appropriate measures should be taken to ensure that the quality and credibility of these databases are maintained, including greater coordination among FAO units as well as with other international organizations, both in collecting data from countries and supporting the development of national statistical systems; (iii) FAO units have a pivotal role to play in quality control of data collection and processing, for which coordination and collaboration within ESS should be further enhanced as well as between the data providers and users, including the creation of a central mechanism for selection, prioritization, harmonization, monitoring and evaluation of statistical activities within FAO; (iv) ESS would require more staff and other resources to meet its challenges; and (v) the FAOSTAT system should be improved to address its shortcomings.

Recommendations

1. Given its own findings from the meetings and appreciation of the conclusions and the justifications for the recommendations made in the draft report, the Panel broadly concurs with the recommendations. In particular, the Panel agrees with the recommendation that FAO renews its commitment to data quality by ensuring that additional resources are made available for its statistical activities and by undertaking advocacy work, and with the recommendation that FAO contributes to the building of capacities in countries to consolidate and improve their statistical systems for food and agriculture, thereby improving the quality of their data.
2. The Panel views these recommendations to imply two broad strategic aims, namely: (i) for FAO to regain its lead role in development of agricultural statistics in the world; and (ii) for ESS to strengthen its central role in the statistical programme of FAO, especially with respect to data quality control.
3. The Panel recommends the following measures to be undertaken to contribute to achieving strategic aim (i): filling up of posts of statisticians in FAO Regional Offices; using existing regional commissions as a venue for establishing regular contact among countries and between FAO and countries; introducing in regional statistical training centres modules in agricultural statistics wherein FAO-recommended norms, standards, and methodologies may be taught; and strengthening collaboration between FAO Regional Offices and subregional economic groupings in the collection of data and promotion of norms and standards.
4. The Panel considers strategic aim (ii) to be an expression of FAO’s internal commitment to statistical quality. Improving the quality of data in FAO requires the strengthening of the ESS role within the Organization. Towards this end, the Panel supports the recommendation that ESS be restructured with the three functions (collection, analysis, development) being accorded equal importance. This means the upgrading of ESSB status from that of branch to that of a service based on the justifications given in the Evaluation Report.
5. Strategic aim (ii) requires that data quality assessment and control must be considered as inherent functions of every aspect of ESS work. For this, the Panel recommends to propose an operational definition for quality of data, both for data submitted by countries and those that have undergone processing within FAO; to assess and report on data quality regularly; and to improve the methodology used to this aim, following the recommendations of an International Advisory Panel of Experts.
6. The Panel agrees with the recommendation to create an International Advisory Panel of Experts, for all the reasons rightly cited in the Evaluation Report. This international panel can be an objective and neutral partner of FAO in regularly reviewing its statistical programmes, considering analytical approaches, recommending strategies to improve responsiveness of countries and consolidating statistical methods.
7. The Panel suggests that to promote the credibility of, and accountability/responsibility for FAO statistics, a long-term objective within FAO should be to consolidate all statistical data production services within FAO in one unit – ESS. While this may not be possible in the immediate future given present institutional arrangements, the Panel recommends that, at the very least, the maintenance of a unique corporate statistical data warehouse should be lodged at ESS, as a means to facilitate the creation, maintenance, updating and data quality checking of the databases. This would vest ESS with final responsibility for the databases disseminated (on agriculture, fisheries and forestry) to external users.
8. The Panel further recommends that FAO establishes (where they do not exist) or enhances (where they do) a regional network of statisticians, providing a regular institutionalized contact between statisticians in FAO Regional Offices and their country counterparts in statistical offices, academe, research institutions, and other data-producing agencies. Through these networks, data exchange may be facilitated, current issues affecting the agricultural statistics systems in countries may be discussed and field programme implementation may be better coordinated.
9. The Panel recommends that additional funding for statistical activities should be prioritized for supporting statistical development in countries; recruitment of young qualified personnel to fill vacant positions within ESS; and development of systems (e.g. FAOSTAT2).

325. As to recent developments in international commitments (e.g. UN Millenium Goals, WFS, poverty eradication, etc.) the Panel notes that they provide FAO opportunities to strengthen and enhance existing frameworks for the development of statistical systems for food and agriculture in particular, and the rural sector in general. In addition, they provide tools for advocating international cooperation and resource sharing among countries and the international donor community, as envisioned in PARIS21. An example is the FAO/World Bank/USDA initiative which aims at promoting not only agricultural statistics but also a larger framework of rural statistics containing most of the new data items (e.g. rural income, rural investment, welfare, poverty), the demand for which has grown tremendously in recent years.

MANAGEMENT RESPONSE

326. The Review of FAO’s Statistical Activities (Review) has been undertaken as a desk study by the Evaluation Service (PBEE) with the assistance of short-term external consultancies. A review of this report by an External Peer Review Panel (Panel) was organized as an integral part of the evaluation process and the Panel Report is attached as an annex to the PBEE Report. The Management Response relates to both reports unless otherwise stated explicitly.

327. The Review and the External Peer Review Panel acknowledge that FAO's work on collection and dissemination of statistical information on food and agriculture is a core element of the Organization’s mandate. In essence, the reports point to the fact that during the period under review, the system has come under pressure with regard to maintaining and improving its quality and coverage as well as meeting increasing demands for additional statistical data. This, combined with a decline in Regular Programme resources committed to statistics, implies that the Organization faces the challenge of addressing new demands on its statistical systems with stagnant resources.

328. Management welcomes the Review on the whole and shares its findings and recommendations in general. In particular, it welcomes the recognition of increasing demand for statistics combined with a decline in Regular Programme resources committed to statistics during the review period and the recommendation for adequate resources for statistical activities and for mobilizing support to enhance national statistical capacities. Furthermore, Management shares the opinion of the Panel that the Review is objective, balanced, well organized and comprehensive. Management’s response given below concentrates on the basic structure and philosophy of the findings and recommendations by PBEE and the Panel rather than on the fine details of the two reports.

329. Management would like to emphasize that it is more constructive and productive to concentrate on the concerns of the reports regarding the quality and coverage of statistics, with a long-run view of sustainability and to focus on the widening gap between actual and potential outputs of the statistical activities, rather than considering past performance from an accounting perspective.

330. As in any environment facing increasing requirements with decreasing means, three different directions or their combinations can be sought for the solution. The first is to increase the means by either reallocating existing resources or by finding new resources. The second is to lower the goals or reduce the requirements to be targeted. The third is to increase the efficiency and thus attempt to meet more requirements with less resources. The Review and the Panel recommend that the solution be sought in the first and third directions and acknowledge that, apart from minimal resource gains that could be achieved through prioritization of workload, the requirements for the statistical system at FAO are more likely to increase.

331. Below we classify the recommendations of PBEE and the Panel within the framework outlined above and present our responses as well as plans of action:

A. Recommendations to Increase Resources Allocated to Statistical Activities

332. Recommendations to commit the Organization to ensure adequate resources for its statistical activities on the one hand, and to increase advocacy for mobilizing international support to strengthening national statistical capacity on the other, are fully supported. While hard work and advances in computer technology compensated for declining resources in the past, the sustainability of the system, let alone the ability to meet growing demands in the future, is clearly at risk.

333. It is agreed that in addition to adequate resources for the technical units in charge of statistical activities at HQ and for augmenting the statistical capacities of the national statistical systems, special attention needs to be given to FAO’s corporate statistical database (FAOSTAT). The planned new statistical database FAOSTAT2 is a necessary development for FAO to meet the needs and challenges in the coming years. The FAOSTAT2 project prepared by technical units, discussed and reviewed widely by all the parties involved, approved by FAO Management and Governing Bodies, is expected to start in 2003 using the resources earmarked from arrears. An inter-departmental steering group chaired by the Director of ESS has already been formed to supervise and monitor the FAOSTAT2 project. Therefore, the concerns of the Review regarding the FAOSTAT2 project being dependent on the resources allocated from arrears and on extra-budgetary resources no longer seems valid for the investment stage, given the recent arrival of the arrears. However, these concerns remain valid for the ongoing maintenance of the FAOSTAT2 system once it has been developed and is operational.

B. Recommendations for Identifying and Modifying Priorities

334. Management agrees with the recommendation to create an International Advisory Panel of Experts, for all the reasons rightly cited in the Review. This international panel can be an objective and neutral partner of FAO in regularly reviewing its statistical programmes, considering analytical approaches, recommending strategies to improve responsiveness of countries and consolidating statistical methods. The Advisory Panel can also contribute to the identification of priority areas as well as areas and activities of lesser priority where FAO’s involvement could be curtailed.

335. Action has commenced in this direction and it is intended to convene the first session of the Panel later in 2003, the cost of which will be financed partly by using savings from existing Regular Programme resources and partly by identifying a significant number of the initial panel members from the heads of statistical offices of the UN family. Efforts will be made in the next biennia, starting in 2004-05, to earmark resources for this important and much needed Panel so that it can regularly provide guidance on statistical activities.

C. Recommendations for Increasing Efficiency/Cost Savings

336. The majority of the findings and recommendations of the Review and the External Panel are related to increasing the efficiency of the statistical activities at FAO. These can be grouped under three broad categories or levels, namely at the country level, at the HQ level and at the international level.

• At the source/country level:

337. Management agrees that the quality of FAO’s statistics ultimately depends on the national statistical systems being able to reach and/or maintain acceptable statistical standards. Serious constraints in the national statistical capacities, and the quality of data reported by countries to FAO due to inadequate financial and technical resources imposes in turn serious constraints and risks on FAO’s statistical system. We therefore fully support the following four groups of recommendations towards supporting statistical development and data compilation at the country level:

1. Strengthening relations with member countries’ experts, including the establishment or enhancement of a regional network of statisticians, using existing regional commissions as a venue for establishing regular contact among countries and between FAO and countries, and strengthening collaboration between FAO Regional Offices and sub-regional economic groupings in the collection of data and promotion of norms and standards.
2. Improving the regional presence by filling vacant posts of statisticians in FAO Regional Offices and creating new ones where necessary. The Fisheries Department has proposed under the real growth scenario of the PWB for 2004-2005 the establishment of a regional fishery statistician post at RAP and ESS has proposed the creation of a new statistician post at RNE.
3. Introducing in regional statistical training programmes modules in agricultural statistics where FAO-recommended norms, standards, and methodologies may be taught. The CountryStat component of the FAOSTAT2 project is expected to be an important step to this end. An expert consultation has been scheduled to meet in March 2003 to review the structure and contents of this important module of FAOSTAT2 which is expected to contribute not only to the exchange of statistical data between countries and FAO, but also to the policy-making process.
4. Reducing the reporting burden of countries by avoiding duplicate data requests and by facilitating improved data collection methods. Data for FAO’s statistical databases are collected using various means ranging from country visits by FAO experts, national publications, national web sites, paper questionnaires, diskettes, tapes, on-line data transfers to virtual questionnaires. Efforts are made, to the extent the capacities in the reporting countries permit, to reduce the burden on the countries as well as on HQ by requesting the existing data sets through electronic means and virtual questionnaires. It is recognized, however, that there is still room for improvement in this area, especially in the coordination of various requests by different FAO units as well as other agencies for the same set of information from member countries. The CountryStat module of FAOSTAT2 when fully developed is expected to minimize the burden of data collection both for HQ and for the participating member countries by harmonizing the statistical databases in the countries with the FAO databases and through their simultaneous updating protocols.

• At the Headquarters level:

338. Three basic groups of recommendations have been made to improve the quality and efficiency of statistical activities at HQ. These involve quality assessment, restructuring and coordination:

1. We agree with the recommendation to develop an operational definition for quality of data, both for data submitted by countries and those that have undergone processing within FAO, to assess and report on data quality regularly; and to improve the methodology used to this aim, following the recommendations of an International Advisory Panel of Experts. ESS has already taken steps in this direction and initiated the ABCDQ (Agricultural Bulletin Board on Data Collection, Dissemination and Quality of Statistics) project in 2000 to guide users that might seek information, on the sources and methods of national agricultural data collection and dissemination. The ABCDQ is currently under development. The present version, available on the ESS Web Page, is being provided to stimulate country input as well as gathering national metadata contributions in an organized and systematic way. It is planned to improve and incorporate ABCDQ into FAOSTAT2, together with Meta Data on quality for all FAO statistics.
2. We agree with the recommendation to restructure ESS, including the upgrading and strengthening of ESSB in view of its central role in compiling, maintaining and improving the largest component of the corporate database. ESS has already developed a budget neutral proposal to restructure the division into three services by upgrading ESSB from branch level to service level and incorporated it into the 2004-05 PWB.
3. As statistical activities in FAO do not fall into the domain of a single technical unit, but are rather distributed among different units, it is clear that they need to be effectively and efficiently coordinated. Management agrees, therefore, with the observations regarding the need for better coordination among the concerned units and with the Review recommendation to achieve this by creating an internal coordinating mechanism on FAO statistics and by ESS taking a more active role in the coordination process. Two initiatives are already in place to this end. First is the new PAIA (Priority Area for Interdisciplinary Action) dealing with Definitions, Norms, Methodologies and Quality of Information which could address some of the general issues, although it has too wide a scope to substitute for a body dealing specifically with statistical questions. The second is the FAOSTAT Working Group on Data Management and Statistical Methodology with the mandate to document the data classification, coding standards, data definitions and methodologies employed in FAO, share information among related units and agree on appropriate organizational structure to support ongoing statistical activities. There remains nevertheless scope for further refinement of these mechanisms and the establishment of new ones to be able to coordinate statistical activities more effectively.

339. The Panel goes further than the Review and suggests in the “long term to consolidate all statistical data production services within FAO in one unit – ESS.” Management finds this to be a measure requiring thorough consideration as it would have significant implications for other cross cutting activities at FAO.

340. Management acknowledges that collecting, analysing, and providing information has become an integral part of many technical units at FAO. The diverse nature of information to be collected, analysed and disseminated makes it almost impossible to centralize this in one unit even within the same department. The nature of expertise required, the diverse nature of data, and the strong link required between data providers and users to facilitate effective use and improve data quality, would dictate against the centralization of the data production services. Furthermore, statistics gathering is an integral part of the whole chain leading to analysis/assessment, advice generation and policy-making and these elements are often jointly addressed in each department’s technical assistance and projects in support to countries. Just as complete centralization should not be seen as the only means to coordinate, avoid duplication and improve data quality, complete decentralization is certainly not the answer. The solution and the challenge is in finding the optimum balance between centralized and decentralized activities coupled with appropriate co-ordination mechanisms.

341. Indeed, the Panel also recognizes that consolidation of statistical activities “may not be possible in the immediate future given present institutional arrangements and recommends that, at the very least, the maintenance of a unique corporate statistical data warehouse should be lodged at ESS, as a means to facilitate the creation, maintenance, updating and data quality checking of the databases. This would vest ESS with final responsibility for the databases disseminated to external users.” Management agrees with this proposal and steps have already been taken to incorporate the concept of “corporate statistical data warehouse” as an integral part of the FAOSTAT2 project.

• At the international level:

342. Management agrees with the Panel’s observation that the recent developments in international commitments (e.g. UN Millenium Goals, WFS, WSSD) and initiatives to improve national and international statistics (e.g. PARIS21, draft FAO Strategy for Improving Information on Status and Trends of Capture Fisheries) provide FAO with opportunities to strengthen and enhance existing frameworks for the development of statistical systems and for advocating international cooperation and resource sharing among countries and the international donor community. We plan to intensify our efforts to be part of the international efforts to coordinate statistical activities and to improve statistical capacities in member countries.

343. In conclusion, Management would like to reiterate that it welcomes the Review on the whole, and its principal observation that the Organization faces the challenge of addressing new demands on its statistical systems with inadequate resources. The recommendations advanced in the Review are found to be extremely useful for the future direction of statistical activities at FAO. Unfortunately, with the exception of few they are not cost free, at least in their initial years. Therefore, as recommended by both reports, the need for adequate resources for statistical activities remains.

REPORT OF THE PROGRAMME COMMITTEE²⁹

344. The Committee appreciated the evaluation report, which was informative and comprehensive, providing a useful analysis of issues and recommendations. It welcomed constructive observations of the External Peer Review Panel and the pro-active response of Management to the evaluation. The Committee also highlighted the importance of statistical work as one of the basic core functions of the Organization, and agreed that building on its sound work, FAO needed to maintain a lead role in global statistics for food and agriculture. It recognized that in this regard, FAO faced considerable challenges, including (a) the need to assist in strengthening national capacity for producing reliable and timely statistical data, especially among a number of developing countries; (b) increasing demands for more and diverse statistical data necessary for development planning and analytical work at all levels; (c) the importance of improving cost-effectiveness of statistical work among the concerned FAO units in the context of serious resource constraints; and (d) the need to ensure adequate resources to underpin FAO’s statistical work.

345. The Committee endorsed the conclusions and recommendations of the evaluation in general. It underlined the following recommendations in particular:

1. provision of technical advice and assistance in building national capacity through partnerships with other development agencies;
2. improving efficiency and effectiveness within the Statistics Division (ESS), including the strengthening of the Basic Data Unit (ESSB) into a Service as already proposed in the SPWB 2004-05;
3. enhanced coordination among the main producers of statistics (ESS, the Fishery Information, Data and Statistics Unit - FIDI, the Forestry Planning and Statistics Branch – FONS, and others such as the Commodities and Trade Division - ESC) in ensuring the quality of statistics through better harmonization of statistical definitions, standards and collection methods;
4. strengthening working relationships with national statistical officers and offices, including measures to reduce the reporting burdens on the countries as well as the organization of the proposed Global Forum;
5. the establishment of an International Advisory Panel to assist in identifying priorities in FAO statistical work as well as in advising on methodological issues;
6. the urgency of implementing the FAOSTAT 2 project as a high priority.

346. The Committee noted with satisfaction that actions were under way to address many of these recommendations. For example, plans were in hand to establish the International Advisory Panel and the FAOSTAT 2 project was to be launched in 2003 with the resources from the payment of arrears. Regarding the recommendation made by the External Review Panel to consolidate all statistical data production services into one unit (ESS), the Committee noted Management’s indication that the current structure offered benefits for member countries by integrating statistical activities into the chain of policy advice, assessment and support to member countries. While endorsing the Management proposal to maintain the current decentralized structure, the Committee requested a report, in two years’ time, on progress being made in improving coordination of statistical activities in the Organization.

______________________________

²⁶ PC 89/5 (b).

²⁷ As of mid-2002, PEs 222P1 and P2 correspond to former Sub-programme 2221 (Statistical Processing and Analysis) and PEs P3 and A1 to Sub-programme 2222 (Statistical Development). Only staff who are involved in statistical work – either full or part time – were counted.

²⁸ The panel members were: Ms A Thiongane, Regional Adviser, UN ECA, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Mr M. Merbis, Economist, Centre for World Food Studies, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Mr G. Calo, Director, EUROSTAT, Luxembourg; Mr M. Galmes, Professor, University of the Republic, Uruguay; and Mr R. Recide, Director, Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, the Philippines.

²⁹ PC/89/REP, paras. 54-56.