Transcript Agricultural census as an instrument for collecting Aquaculture Statistics - Vanuatu experience

FAO ROUNDTABLE MEETING ON PROGRAMME FOR THE 2010 ROUND OF
CENSUSES OF AGRICULTURE
Apia, Samoa 9 – 13 March 2009
Agriculture census as an instrument for collecting Aquaculture Statistics
Definition of Aquaculture
 Aquaculture can be regarded as the science, art, and business of cultivating marine or freshwater
food fish or shellfish such as oysters, clams, salmon and trout under controlled conditions.
 It can also be known as Aqua-farming.
Introduction
Aquaculture has become increasingly important in many countries
especially the Asian countries. Therefore, there is a great demand for data on
the structure of the aquaculture production industry. Some countries collect
aquaculture data as part of a general fisheries census covering both fisheries
and aquaculture. However, there is a strong interest in many countries to link
agriculture with aquaculture by conducting agriculture and aquaculture
census together.
Close link or relationship between aquaculture and agriculture
 Aquaculture involves cultivating of fish, shellfish or prawns under controlled
conditions which is more or less the same as raising of livestock or cultivation of
crops under agricultural production.
 Aquaculture is often integrated with agricultural production e.g. the breeding of
fish or prawns in the same area where paddy-rice are grown.
 Aquaculture and agriculture commonly share the same inputs such as machinery
and labour.
 Statistically, the two censuses are separate but operationally, they can be
combined into a single field enumeration system.
Advantages in carrying out a joint agriculture and aquaculture
censuses:
 The cost of data collection for the two censuses is reduced.
 It can help to provide a link between agriculture and aquaculture data, enabling a wider
analysis of data in both censuses.
 It makes it easy to apply standard concepts and definitions in the two censuses.
 There would be organisational benefits in having one enumeration team responsible for
data collection in both censuses.
Aquaculture practice in Vanuatu
• Past censuses and/or surveys on agriculture did not capture data on aquaculture.
However, data on fisheries (both salt and fresh water) were collected at the household
level.
• Recently we have a few of these activities but they are more on commercial basis and
information obtained from these establishments are through administrative records.
• We are seeing very recently new initiatives in this area; therefore it is our hope that
the next census of agriculture will consider including aquaculture data collection in the
commercial farm questionnaire.
Any questions / queries