Pilot survey on agriculture and fisheries set in four provincial areas

In March, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) and the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) will count or enumerate all the fishing establishments and households involved in agricultural activities in select areas in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.   Full-blown conduct of the 2012 Census of Agriculture and Fisheries (CAF) will be in February 2013. The 2012 CAF is only the 6th of the series of decennial census of agriculture and the 5th census of fisheries in the country.    The pilot survey for the 2012 Census of Agriculture and Fisheries will involve these localities:  

• Bolinao, Pangasinan in Region I (Ilocos Region);
• Libon, Albay in Region V (Bicol Region);
• Manjuyod, Negros Oriental in Region VII (Central Visayas); and
• Banga, South Cotabato in Region XII (SOCCSKSARGEN). 

  The CAF census is designed to obtain comprehensive data on farm characteristics and information on basic fishing operations. It will also help determine the type and number of equipment, machineries and facilities used in farm and fishing activities.   The study will provide benchmarks for the various statistical series which are designed to measure progress in agriculture and fisheries sector.   Procedures recommended for use in the actual 2012 CAF will be tested in pilot survey locales. The pilot testing will cover coordination, training, field operation, manual and machine processing, progress monitoring, and census evaluation. — ELR, GMA News