Regional Workshop on Agriculture and Environment Statistics
A regional workshop held in Barbados was the collaboration between the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the government of Italy. The workshop was held on 10th to 11th November and covered two main topics which were (a) inform on an overall strategy for a modernization of Agricultural statistics and (b) to build capacity for the development for the Environment and Climate Change Statistics and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Indicators.
On the first day of the meeting emphasis was placed on environmental Statistics and cross-cutting issues. Other areas such as Building Capacities for the reinforcement of the Environment and Climate Change related statistics and the SDG indicators. In total there are approximately seventeen (17) indicators. Other topics discussed were the progress made at CARICOM level in disseminating Climate Change Statistics and SDG Indicators, and the role of the NSO (National Statistical Office) in coordinating Climate Change Statistics and SDG Indicators, futuristic prospects and developments and supporting modernization of CARICOM statistics using SDMX standard (Statistical Data and Metadata Exchange).
Environmental statistics was introduced to the region since 1999 with a series of Capacity Building Exercises. This workshop was the completion of one of these exercises and it is expected that another will commence shortly. It was explained that these exercises were necessary since there was a lack of human resource that is required to obtain this information or the lack of support/cooperation from central statistics. Fortunately, the agricultural section of data collection has approximately three (3) more years. The expiration due in 2025 and for most countries there are areas of overlapping between the sectors i.e., Environment and Agriculture. This, therefore, will allow some goals to be achieved either via indicators or proxies.
The Agricultural Statistics were the focus on the second day and topics such as setting out an overall strategy for the modernization of Agricultural
statistics, proposed minimum set of common indicators, process of identifying the minimum set of common indicators and a roadmap towards the strategy implementation over the next five years were deliberated on. As part of the implementation phase a farm register needed to be created. “The farm register must be ready by 2025, Jamaica and Trinidad were used to pilot this sector and there are fifteen (15) indicators ten (10) of which are mandatory while the others were optional.
Antigua and Barbuda through the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Barbuda Affairs (MAFBA) was represented by Mrs. Anesta Edwards from the Ministry’s Statistics Unit. “Attending the two-day workshop was beneficial to the Caricom countries because not only did it show us, A clearer path in achieving these goals but also the importance of having data. Stakeholders need to be educated as to the importance of collecting data from the farmers”, Edwards said. From the data collected important everyday decisions can be made in regards to Food importation/exportation and for development of the Agricultural sector, in our country and the region.
Proudly, Antigua and Barbuda was one of the fewer CARICOM States that actually saw the importance of this data collection and actual submitted some Environmental information. The MAFBA through its Statistics, Research and Information Technology department (SRIT) are currently gathering data that would be utilized for providing the necessary reports and disseminate the information to the CARICOM Secretariat when requested. The SRIT, was the brainchild of Colin O’Keiffe, Permanent Secretary of the MAFBA.
The Environmental component of this project was piloted in Suriname and the information shared gave the other countries in attendance more insight pertaining to ways forth in obtaining data for the SDGs. The Caricom States present were Montserrat, Barbados, Grenada, St. Vincent, St. Lucia, Dominica, Trinidad, Antigua & Barbuda, St. Kitts & Nevis, Guyana, and Suriname.
This initiative was supported by the funding provided by the Italian Government through the Italy’s National Institute of Statistics Programme called “CARICOM Capacity Building in the Field of Statistics”.