Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Strengthens Agricultural Statistics Across Africa to Support Better Decisions on Food and Agriculture

Reliable agricultural data is helping African countries make better decisions on food security, agricultural development and sustainable agrifood systems. During the 2024–2025 biennium, the FAO Regional Office for Africa expanded technical support across the continent, helping countries strengthen agricultural statistics, improve national data systems and build the evidence needed for policy and investment.

Working across 47 African countries, the FAO Regional Office for Africa supports governments to collect, analyse and use agricultural data through national agricultural censuses and surveys, Food Balance Sheets, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) monitoring and statistical capacity development. These efforts help countries generate the information needed to monitor national priorities, regional commitments and global development agendas.

During the biennium, FAO supported:

• 24 countries to conduct national agricultural surveys through the 50x2030 Initiative, expanding the availability of high-quality agricultural data.
• 16 countries to prepare or implement national agricultural censuses, strengthening the foundation for long-term agricultural statistics.
• 15 countries to compile national Food Balance Sheets, providing comprehensive information on food availability, dietary energy, proteins, fats and other nutrients to support food security and nutrition planning.
• 18 countries to strengthen monitoring and reporting of agriculture-related Sustainable Development Goal indicators.
• Multiple countries through technical training and capacity development to improve national statistical systems.

The results are contributing to stronger national statistical systems and improving the availability of reliable data for evidence-based policymaking. The biennium also saw improvements in the quality of data submitted to FAO's global statistical databases and stronger collaboration with regional economic communities, particularly the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Secretariat.

Building long-term statistical capacity

To meet growing demand for technical support, the FAO Regional Office for Africa has adopted an approach that pools resources across programmes, develops regional expertise and invests in mentoring and on-the-job training. This model is helping expand technical capacity while ensuring countries receive sustained support in agricultural statistics.

Looking ahead, the FAO Regional Office for Africa aims to further strengthen its role as a regional centre of excellence for agricultural statistics and analytical work. By continuing to build national capacity and placing statistics at the centre of programme design, FAO is helping countries generate the data needed to shape policies, attract investment and accelerate agrifood systems transformation across Africa.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO): Regional Office for Africa.