GSARS Phase II Workshop Held in Abuja: Enhancing Capacity for CAADP Indicators Computation

The Global Strategy to Improve Agricultural and Rural Statistics (GSARS) successfully conducted a workshop in Abuja from April 16 to 18, 2024, focusing on the methodological presentation of CAADP indicators, gap analysis of national data sets, and hands-on sessions for indicators computation. This workshop aimed to address the challenges associated with the calculation of Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) indicators, which are essential for supporting evidence-based decision-making and investments in agricultural development. 

The workshop brought together 18 participants from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Participants included statisticians and experts responsible for planning, coordination, and research in agriculture and CAADP focal point. Notably, the workshop saw strong female participation, with eight of the attendees being women. 

The primary objective of the workshop was to train stakeholders on selected CAADP indicators, assess existing data sources, and compute the indicators. Specific activities included: 

- Training participants on the definitions, targets, parameters, and methods of computation for selected CAADP indicators. 

- Analyzing existing data sources for each indicator and identifying gaps or insufficient quality data. 

- Suggesting new variables and modalities to be included in agricultural surveys to fill identified gaps. 

- Conducting hands-on sessions using SPSS software to process data (compute intermediate variables, identify duplicate observations, merge files, detect and correct outliers, apply sampling weights). 

Participants were trained using the Living Standards Measurement Study - Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) database from 2018/2019. They computed various indicators, including the proportion of men and women engaged in agriculture with access to financial services, fertilizer consumption, growth rate of irrigated areas, access to agricultural advisory services, and secure land rights among farm households. 

The workshop also used data from the Central Bank of Nigeria, FAOSTAT, and the World Development Indicators/World Bank to compute additional indicators related to agricultural value added, agricultural land and agricultural workers.  

The workshop received positive feedback from participants, with 70% expressing high satisfaction with the relevance of the workshop and 30% satisfied. Participants appreciated the clarity of the presentations and the expertise of the trainer. They found the training highly relevant to their work and recommended it to colleagues.   

The GSARS Phase II workshop in Abuja worked to enhance the capacity of Nigerian stakeholders to compute CAADP indicators, crucial for agricultural development. Participants expressed a strong interest in further training. This achievement would not have been possible without the valuable support of our colleagues and partners in the country offices.