Tabulation, Dissemination and Archiving

CHAPTER 10

TABULATION, DISSEMINATION AND ARCHIVING

Tabulation

Introduction

10.1Data collected in an agricultural census are ofstatistical interest if they can bepresented in aggregated form. The primary form ofpresentation ofstatistical data is the statistical table. The tabulation programme for an agricultural census is the set of statistical tables prepared to present the main census results and should be based on the users’ primary needs. Because of the emergence of new information and communication technologies, the way to present census data is changing rapidly. The compilation of census data has become more and more user-friendly and web-based data allows users to develop their own tables making printed reports of less relevance. However three aspects remain: a) the existence of a tabulation programme is paramount for developingthe census questionnaire and to ensure that all relevant census information is included; b) countries should produce some basic standard reports using a wide range of methods of dissemination and media (printed, CD-Roms, pendrives or for the internet) to ensure the widest dissemination of the census results; c) international comparisons require standard tables for all countries including those where census databases are not on the web.

10.2Thetabulationprogrammeforan agriculturalcensusmustbedeterminedbeforedesigningthe censusquestionnaires.This will ensurethedatacollectedmeettherequirements forthetabulationprogramme.Also,thetabulationprogrammemayhavedirect implicationsforthecensusdesign;forexample,thelevelofadministrative unitstobepresentedinthe tablescouldbeadecisivefactorinchoosingbetweencompleteorsampleenumeration, orindeciding whatsamplesizeisneeded.

10.3Statisticaltables in a standard report (basic cross-tabulations), present different types of summarized measures:

-Totalsforitemscollected,suchasthetotalareaofsugarcaneharvested.

-Totalnumberofunitswithcertaincharacteristics,suchasthenumberofholdingswithpigs.

-Averagesforitems,suchastheaverageareaofholding.

-Percentages,suchasthepercentageofholdingsusingorganicfertilizersorthepercentage ofcommunitieswithelectricityconnected.

10.4All data items collected in the census should be presentedin at least one table cross-tabulated with administrative region or agro-ecological zone.

10.5Afeatureofstatisticaltablesisthattheyprovidedataclassifiedaccordingtovarious characteristics.Forexample,onemaywishto knowtheaveragehouseholdsizefordifferentarea of holdings, orthepercentageofholdingsusingorganicfertilizersfor holdersofdifferentages.Here,“areaofholding” and“ageofholder”aretheclassification variables. Inmostcensusesandsurveys,therearesomemainclassification variablesusedinmanytables.Often,classification variables needtobeformed intosuitable classesforpresentationinthetables.Thus,intheaboveexample,ageofholderneedstobegroupedinto suitableageclassesandareaofholdingintosuitableareaclasses. The most basic set of census tables presents the data for each item against a common variable such as the administrative regions of the country.It is important that data for all census items are tabulated; otherwise the user will question why the data was collected.

10.6Often, more complexcross-tabulationsarepreparedshowingcensusdataclassifiedbytwodifferentitems simultaneously.Anexampleofacross-tabulationisatableshowingthenumberofholdingsclassifiedby ageofholderandareaofholding.Thiswouldbeatwo-waytableshowingthenumberofholdingsineach age/areaclass;forexample,onecellofthetablewouldshowthenumberofholdingsforwhich:(i)age ofholderisintherange25–34years;and(ii)areaofholdingisintherange1.00–1.99ha.There are a very large number of possible cross-tabulations and an even larger number of 3-way tabulations such as number of holdings classified by age of holder, area of holding and region. For the main census reportcross tabulations should only be considered in very special cases and 3-way tables should be avoided. Cross tabulations and 3-way tabulations are particularly useful for in-depth studies and here the analysts should have access to the public database so that s/he can generate his/her own specific set of tables.

10.7Animportantelementinpreparingtheagriculturalcensustabulationprogrammeisdecidingon thetabulationclasses.Often,thereareinternationalstandards,andcountriesshouldadheretothose whereverpossibletohelpmakecomparisonsbetweencountries.Attention shouldalsobegivento consistencybetweenstatisticalcollectionsinthecountry;forexample,itwouldbedifficulttorelatedata ifagegroups25-34, 35-44, etc.were usedinonecollectionand20-30, 31 - 40,etc.in another. Recommended classificationsforuseintheagriculturalcensustabulationprogrammearepresentedin thischapter. In order to meet national reporting needs which do not conform to the tabulation classes listed, more disaggregate classes are encouraged. This will allow for re-aggregation to the international standards for comparison purposes. In some cases countries may apply national units of measure, in which case additional tabulations using international units of measures and the tabulation classes in Table 10.1 are also needed in order to allow for international comparison. Wherecountrieswishto usedifferentclassgroupings in their standard reports,theyshouldalsoreporttheresults accordingtotheguidelinesgivenhere for internationalcomparison purposes.

PartA:Essentialitemstobetabulated in standard reports

10.8Essential items are those items that every country should collect, regardless of the approach used, and that are imperative for national and international purposes. The breakdown of the essential item into size groups forms tabulation classes.In some cases a component of the item is used for the establishment of the classes, this component is a classification variable.Thetabulationclassesandreferencegroupforeachessentialitem or variable aresummarizedinTable10.1. Thereferencegroupreferstothegroupofholdingstobetabulatedfortheitem;forexample,theitem “areairrigated”isonlymeaningfulforlandholdings.Thereis morethanonewaytotabulatesomeitems; fornumberoflivestock,forexample,holdingscanbetabulatedaccordingtowhethertheyhaveeach typeoflivestockor bythenumberofaparticulartypeoflivestocktheyhave.

10.9Ifacommunity surveyis carriedoutaspartoftheagricultural census, consideration should also be giventousingcommunity-leveldata asclassification variables fortabulations against some of the essential items such as number of holdings. This isdiscussed inparagraphs 10.28 - 10.32.

10.10In some countries, economic typologies are required, such as the main agricultural activity on the holding or typologies of family farms. The typologies are not defined as part of the WCA programme but it should be noted that the essential items of the census are an important source of the data needed for deriving these typologies.

World Programme for the Census of Agriculture 2020

Table10.1:Agriculturalcensus essential items–tabulationclasses

Essentialitem/classification variable / Tabulationclasses / Referencegroup
Administrative unit or agro ecological zone
(From 0101 Identification and location of the holding) / Basedonnationalgroupings / Allholdings
0103 Legalstatusof agricultural holder (type of holder) / A civil person
Group of civil persons
Juridical person / Allholdings
0104 Sexof agricultural holder / Holderis anindividual
Male
Female
Joint holders
Holdersare maleonly
Holdersarefemaleonly
Holdersarebothmaleandfemale / Holdingsin household sector
0105 Ageof agricultural holder / Holderis an individual
Under25years
25– 34years
35– 44years
45– 54years
55– 64years
65yearsandover
Joint holders / Holdingsin household sector
0107 Main purpose of production of the holding / Producing mainly for home consumption
Producing mainly for sale / Holdingsin household sector
0108 Othereconomic activities of the household / Support activities to agriculture and post-harvest crop activities
Hunting, trapping andrelatedservice activities
Forestry and logging
Fishing and aquaculture,
Manufacturing
Wholesaleandretail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
Hotelsandrestaurants (excluding agro-tourism)
Agro-tourism
Other / Holdings in the household sector
(One holding can belong to more than one class)
0201 Total areaof holding / Holdingswithoutland
Holdingswithland
Lessthan 1 ha
1– 1.99ha
2– 4..99ha
5– 9.99ha
10– 19.99ha
20– 49.99ha
50– 99ha
100– 199ha
200– 499ha
500– 999ha
1,000ha and over / Allholdings
Land use types
(from 0202 Area of holding according to land use types) / Land under temporary crops
Land under temporary meadows and pastures
Land temporarily fallow
Land under permanent crops
Land under permanent meadows and pastures
Land under farm buildings and farmyards
Forest or other wooded land
Area used for aquaculture (including inland and coastal waters if part of the holding)
Other landnot elsewhere classified. / Allholdings
Areaof agriculturalland
(from 0202 Area of holding according to land use types) / Holdingswithoutagriculturalland
Holdingswithagriculturalland
(Areagroupingsasforareaof holding) / Allholdings
Land tenure types
(from 0203Area of holding according to land tenure types) / Holdingswithoutland
Holdingsoperatedunderonetenureform
Legalownershiporowner-likepossession
Non-legalownershiporowner-likepossession
Rentedfromsomeone else
Other
Holdingsoperatedundertwoormoretenureforms / Allholdings
0302 Areaof land actually irrigated: fully and partially controlled irrigation / Holdingswithoutirrigatedland
Holdingswithland actually irrigated
fully controlled irrigation
partially controlled irrigation
(Areagroupingsasforareaof holding) / Holdingswithland
Type of temporary crops
(from 0402Area of temporary crops harvested ) / Holdings without temporary crops
Holdings with temporary crops
Basedoncropclassificationin Annex4 / Holdingswithland
(One holding can belong to more than one class)
Type of permanent crops
(from 0406Area of productive and non-productive permanent crops in compact plantations) / Holdings without permanent crops
Holdings with permanent crops
Basedoncropclassificationin Annex4
Alsoclassifiedby:
Compactplantationis present
Compactplantationis notpresent / Holdingswithland
(In the case of the first classification, one holding can belong to more than one class)
Presence of scattered permanent crop trees
(from 0407 Number of permanent crop trees in scattered plantings) / Basedoncropclassificationin Annex4 / Holdingswithland
(One holding can belong to more than one class)
0411 Use of each type of fertilizer / No use of fertilizers
Use of fertilizers
Mineral fertilizers
Organo-mineral fertilizers
Organic fertilizers
Biofertilizers
Manure
Other organic materials to enhance plant growth / Holdings with land
(One holding can belong to more than one class)
0501 Type of livestock system / Holdings without livestock
Holdings with livestock
Grasing system
Mixed system Industrial system / All holdings
Livestock types
(from 0502 Number of animals) / Holdings without livestock
Holdings with livestock
Basedonlivestockclassificationin Annex6. / Allholdings
(One holding can belong to more than one class)
0502a Numberof cattle / Holdingswithnocattle
Holdingswith cattle
1 – 2 head
3 – 4 head
5 – 9 head
10– 19head
20– 49head
50– 99head
100– 199head
200– 499head
500headandover / Allholdings
0502b Numberof buffaloes / Sameasfor"Numberof cattle" / Allholdings
0502c Numberof sheep / Holdingswithnosheep
Holdingswithsheep
1 – 4 head
5 – 9 head
10– 19head
20– 49head
50– 99head
100– 199head
200– 499head
500headandover / Allholdings
0502d Numberof goats / Sameasfor"Numberof sheep" / Allholdings
0502e Number of pigs / Sameasfor"Numberof sheep" / Allholdings
0502f Number of poultry / Holdingswithnopoultry
Holdingswith poultry
1 – 9 poultry
10 – 49 poultry
50– 99poultry
100– 199poultry
200– 499poultry
500– 999poultry
1,000– 4,999poultry
5,000– 9,999poultry
10,000poultryormore / Allholdings
0503 Number of female breeding animals / Holdings without livestock
Holdings with livestock
same classes as for number of livestock by type (0502a – f) / Allholdings
0601 Use of agriculturalpesticides / No use of agricultural pesticides
Use of pesticides:
Insecticides
Herbicides
Fungicides
Rodenticides
Other / All holdings
(One holding can belong to more than one class)
Householdsize
(from 0801 Household size by sex and age groups) / 1 person
2 – 3 persons
4 – 5 persons
6 – 9 persons
10personsandover / Holdingsin household sector
Number of household members for whom the working on the holding is the main activity
(from 0901 Whether working on the holding is the main activity) / 1 person
2 – 3 persons
4 – 5 persons
6 – 9 persons
10personsandover / Holdings in household sector
Working time on the holding by household members
(from 0902 Working time on the holding ) / Male
No work
Work
Full-time work during 1-3 months in the year
Full-time work during 4-6 months in the year
Full-time work during 7 or more months in the year
Part-time work during 1-3 months in the year
Part -time work during 4-6 months in the year
Part -time work during 7 or more months in the year
Female
groups as above / All household members of holdings in household sector
Working time on the holding by paid employees
(from 0903 Number and working time of employees on the holding by sex) / Male
Full-time work during 1-3 months in the year
Full-time work during 4-6 months in the year
Full-time work during 7 or more months in the year
Part-time work during 1-3 months in the year
Part -time work during 4-6 months in the year
Part -time work during 7 or more months in the year
Female
groups as above / All paid employees in all holdings
1201 Presence of aquaculture on the holding / Aquacultureis present
Aquacultureis notpresent / Allholdings

Mainclassificationvariables

10.11Ninemainclassificationvariableshavebeenidentifiedfortabulationsofthe essential items when the reports are produced.Theninevariablesarediscussedinthefollowingparagraphs.Table 10.1 makesreference totheitems. As far as the proposed classes are concerned they are broader than in previous programmes and they respond to the need for international comparisons. However, countries are free to present finer classifications within the limits of classes present here.

10.12Administrative unit oragro-ecologicalzone(from item0101).Thesub-divisionofcensusdatainto administrative unitsoragro-ecologicalzonesisoneofthekeytabulationrequirements. Holding location defines the administrative unit or agro-ecological zone. Basic cross-tabulations usually present the collected variables by administrative unit or agro-ecological zone.

10.13Legalstatusofagricultural holder (type of holder)(item0103).Thisprovidesabasisforcomparative analysisofholdings operatedbyhouseholds,cooperatives,corporations,etc.

10.14Total areaofholding(item0201).Areaofholdingisthemostwidelyusedclassificationvariablefor agriculturalcensustablesas itusuallyprovidesagoodmeasureof sizeofholding,particularlyforregions withhomogeneousland.Areaofholdingmay, however,havelimitationsasasizemeasure.Itmayincludeforest, woodlandorotherlandnotusedforagriculturalpurposes.Italsodisregardslandquality;forexample, non-irrigatedlandinanaridorsemi-aridregionmaybemuchlessproductivethanirrigatedland elsewhere,andlandathighaltitudesmayhaveanentirelydifferentproductivecapacityfromthesame landareaatalowerlevel.Theareaofholdingmeasurealsoneglectslanduseintensity:onepieceofland mayproducetwoormorecropsperyear,whereasforanother,acropmaybeproducedonlyeverytwo orthreeyears. If a different unit from hectares is used, countries should transform all areas to hectares for tabulation purposes in order to maintain international comparisons.

10.15Areaofagriculturalland(from item0202).Thismaybeamoresuitablesizemeasureforsome purposesasitdirectlymeasuresthelandusedmainlyforcropproduction and grazing.Otherlandmeasures,such asareaofpermanentcrops,mayalsobeusefulclassificationvariables. The same comment as before about the use of hectares as unit is pertinent here.

10.16Number oflivestock(foraparticularlivestocktype)(items0502a–0502f).Thenumberof livestockofaparticulartypeisasuitablemeasureofthesizeoflivestockactivitywherethereisone predominantkindoflivestockinthecountryandwherelivestockraisingisa majoractivity.Forexample, inanimportantsheepraisingcountry,it maybeusefultoclassifyagriculturalcensusdataaccordingto classesbasedonthenumberofsheep,suchas1–4head,5–9head,etc.Normally,it isonlypossibleto classifyagriculturalcensusdataonthebasisofaparticulartypeoflivestock,ratherthanforalllivestock orgroupingsoflivestocktypes,asitisdifficulttomeaningfullygrouplivestockofdifferenttypes. Sometimes, groupingssuchas“largeanimals”,“smallanimals”and“poultry”canbeusedtodescribe cattle/buffaloes,sheep/goats/pigs,andchickens/ducks,respectively.

10.17Mainpurposeofproduction of the holding(item0107).Purposeofproductionisausefulmeasureinanalyzing holdingsaccordingtotheir market orientation

10.18Householdsize(Item0801).Householdsizeisausefulclassificationvariableforunderstandingthe dependenceofruralpeopleonlandandforevaluatinghouseholdmembersasa sourceoflabourforthe holding.Fortabulatingonhouseholdsize,somecountriesmaywishtouseequivalencescales,which takeintoaccountthedemographiccharacteristicsofhouseholds.Formoreinformation, seeHandbookonHouseholdIncomeStatistics(UNECE,2011)

10.19Sexofagricultural holderiItem0104).Sexofholderisausefulmeasureinanalyzingtheroleofwomenin agriculture.Tabulatingsexofholderiscomplicatedby theexistenceof holdersconsistingofmorethanoneperson.

10.20Ageofagricultural holder(item0105).Thisclassificationvariableprovidesawayofmakingcomparisons betweenyoungandoldfarmers,andstudyingtheeffectsofmigrationfromruralareas.Thistabulation should be done only for holdings headed by one-person..

Working time on the holding

10.21Working time at holding level (items 0902 and 0903)is particularly useful in understanding the amount of work needed for different types of holdings, for example livestock holdings or holdings with temporary crops. The tabulation classes in Table 10.1 allow only for tabulation of the number of workers by categories of working time.To report on the total labour input to holdings requires an aggregation of the total working time by all workers on the holding.The categories of working time for household members and employees in the essential item would need to be converted fromcategoricalto continuous data (also called ratio data) in order to calculate the aggregate working time. There are various methods by which a quantity of working timecan be calculated from the categories.The quantity of working time by the household members and employees would then be aggregated to give the total quantity of working time on the holding.Some countries derive special units of working time, for example, a unit corresponding to the work performed by one person who is occupied on an agricultural holding on a full time basis.However, the definition of the units to be used would be decided by each country according to need.The tabulation would be the amount of aggregate working time (or the number of special units of time)by various characteristics such as sex of workers, legal status of holdings and size of holdings.

Essential items:cross-tabulations

10.22Thereare a large numberofpossibletablesthatcouldbeproducedfromatypicalagriculturalcensus, evenforalimitednumberofitems.Eachessential itemcouldbecross-tabulated againsteachmainclassification variable orevenseveralmainclassification variablesatthesametime.For example, the presence of aquaculture could be tabulated by administrative unitto analyse the geographical distribution ofaquaculture, orbyarea ofholding toanalyse therelationship between aquaculture and area of holding. Alternatively, the presence of aquaculture could be tabulated by administrative unitandareaofholdingtogethertoanalysetherelationship betweenaquaculture and area of holdingindifferentpartsofthecountry.The section presents the most common cross-tabulations of essential items.However, the variables which can be cross-tabulated are numerous and other cross tabulations can be made according to national needs.

10.23Generating a statistical table from an agricultural census requires specialist technical inputs, andcountriesmusthavearealisticcensustabulationprogramme, takingintoconsideration theresources availableandtheimportanceoftheinformationin eachtable to be published in a standard report.Forexample,tabulatingareaofholdingby ageofholdermaybeimportant,butisitnecessarytotabulatetypeofpermanentcropby ageofholder? Countriesshouldbecautiousofclassifyingdatatoofinelyincross-tabulations, becausetablecellsmay bebasedononlyoneortwoholdings,whichmaybreachconfidentiality. This is crucial when presenting web-based data because if appropriate precautions are not taken, users could have access to individual information (See paragraph 10.50).Also, ifthecensusiscarriedoutonasamplebasis,censusestimatesbasedonfewsampleholdingswillhaveunacceptably highsamplingerrors.

10.24Themostcommoncross-tabulationsfor the essential items are summarizedinTable10.2. TherowsofTable10.2showtheessentialitemstobetabulated in a standard report.The columns show the ninemain classification variables giveninparagraphs 10.11–10.19.Classification variablesappearinboththerowsand columns.ThebodyofTable10.2showsthecharacteristic beingmeasuredinthecross-tabulation; in particular:N=Numberofholdings;A=Area;L=Numberoflivestock.

10.25ThefollowingexampleillustratestheuseofTable10.2.Item“total areaofholding”(row)isshown asbeingclassifiedagainstclassificationvariable“householdsize”(column)withthecharacteristics“number ofholdings”and“area”.Thismeansthattwotablesshouldbeprepared:oneshowingthenumberof holdingsforeachareaofholdingandhouseholdsizeclassasgiveninparagraphs10.14and10.18;and theothershowingtheareaofholdingforeachareaofholdingandhouseholdsizeclass.

10.26Where“numberofholdings”isbeingtabulated,thetablecellsmayormaynotbemutually exclusive.Anexampleofmutuallyexclusiveclassesiswherenumberofholdingsisclassifiedby householdsize;here,eachholdingcanonlybelongtoonehouseholdsizeclass.Anexampleofa table whereclassesarenotmutuallyexclusiveiswherenumberofholdingsisclassifiedbylanduse;here,a givenholdingcanbeshownmorethanonceinthelanduseclassification– forexample,a holdingmay havelandunderpermanentcrops,aswellasforestandotherwoodedland.

10.27Given that all data items collected in the census should be tabulated in at least one basic table by administrative region or agro-ecological zone, the number of additional cross tabulations for the main census report will be limited.However, supplementary, thematic reports should be considered as should web-based dissemination of additional cross-tabulations.The tabulation programme in Table 10.2 will not necessarily meet all data needs even for the essential items. Countries should, therefore, prepare additional tablesas needed.

Table10.2:Agriculturalcensusessential items:recommended cross-tabulations

Essential item / Main classification variable
Administrative unit /ecological zone / Legal status of the holder (Type of holder) / Total area of holding / Area of agricultural land / No. of livestock / Purpose of production / Household size / Sex of holder / Age of holder
0101 Location of agricultural holding / ..
0103 Legal status (Type of holder) / N,A,L / .. / N,A / N, L
0104 Sex of agricultural holder / N / ..
0105 Age of agricultural holder / N / ..
0107 Main purpose of production of the holding / N,A,L / .. / N
0108 Other economic activities of the household / N / N / N / N
0201 Total area of holding / N,A / N,A / .. / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A
0202 Area of holding according to land use type / N,A / N,A / N,A / .. / N,A / N,A
0203 Area of holding according to land tenure types / N,A / N,A / N, A / N,A / N,A
0302 Area of land actually irrigated: fully and partially controlled irrigation / N,A / NA, / N,A
0402 Area of temporary crops harvested / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A
0406 Area of productive and non-productive permanent crops in compact plantations / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A
0411 Use of each type of fertilizer / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A / N
0501 Type of livestock system / N,L / N,L / N,L / N,L / N,L
0502 Number of animals / N,L / N,L / - / N,L / N,L
0503 Number of female breeding animals / N,L / N,L / - / N,L / N,L
0601 Use of agricultural pesticides / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A / N,A
Householdsize
(from 0801 Household size by sex and age groups) / N / N,A / N,L
Number of household members for whom the working on the holding is the main activity
(from 0901 Whether working on the holding is the main activity) / N,A,L / N,A / N,A / N,L / N / N
1201 Presence of aquaculture / N / N

N= Numberof holdings;A= Area;L = Numberof livestock.

PartB:Community-leveldata

10.28Community-leveldatainanagriculturalcensuscanbetabulatedintwoways:first,tosummarize thecharacteristics ofcommunities;andsecond,touseasclassificationvariables fortabulationsofcensus holding-leveldata.For the latter purpose it is crucial to be able to link each holding with its community. In many countries this is not easy because the same community can be known with different names or the community limits are not clear. The preliminary cartographic work should clarify for each census enumeration areathe community or communities the area belongs to. The cross tabulation of community level and holding data is also very important in the quality assessment of information provided in the field. For example if in a census questionnaire it appears that the holder is a member of a farmer association and in the community there is no farmers’ association the point should be clarified or if the holder appears as having animal grazing in communal land and there is no communal grazing land in the community a clarificationis needed.

10.29Somecommunity-level dataneedtobeformedintosuitablegroupingsfortabulationto be presented in a standard report. Thisparticularlyappliestodataontravellingtime,wheresuitablegroupings–forexample:lessthan1 hour;1–2hours;2hoursormore–shouldbeusedtoreflecthoweasyitisforpeopleinthecommunity toaccessaspecificservice.