The counting phase of the first General Census of Agriculture, which will provide a detailed and global overview of agriculture in Tunisia, will be launched in October 2021.
This information was announced during a workshop on the progress of the project: “Support to the Implementation of the General Census of Agriculture (GCA) & Achievement of the Inventory of Forest, Pastoral and Olive Growing Resources in Tunisia,” organised recently by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).
This census, which will provide a reference database on agriculture and will provide the sector with reliable statistical data, is currently in the preparatory phase of the “pre-count” fieldwork which is being finalised, the FAO press release said.
“Until May 7, 2021, the progress rate reached 79%, totaling 757,147 farms surveyed and about 203,776 farms remain to be covered,” said Acting Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries, Mohamed Fadhel Kraiem.
“Taking into account the progress rate, the remaining workload and specific field conditions, the focus will be on the governorates of Kasserine, Kairouan, Bizerte, Jendouba, Kef and Nabeul, where the progress rate of the pre-count ranged between 51% and 66%, until May 7,” he indicated at the meeting.
The minister also underlined the importance of this project which he said is being implemented at a time when the Tunisian agricultural policy is facing major challenges. He cited the improvement of the performance of farms, the sustainable management of natural resources in light of the threats posed by climate change and the improvement of the sectors’ competitiveness.
The updating of the agricultural policy based on solid statistical systems capable of providing decision-makers with reliable and updated information on the state and evolution of the sector (production, supply, competitiveness and investments), is essential to meet these challenges, Kraiem stressed, calling on the team in charge of the project to respect the deadlines and ensure continuous monitoring of the project to guarantee its success.
Taking the floor, FAO Representative to Tunisia Philippe Ankers recalled that this project aims to support rural livelihoods, food production and sustainable management of ecosystems by maximizing the sustainable potential of natural resources in the least developed regions of Tunisia.
The development of accurate data and reliable information will help achieve these objectives and make decisions regarding the formulation of development policies and programmes.
It is also an opportunity to devise and set up a system for measuring and monitoring indicators and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Ankers pointed out.
The general census of the agricultural sector in Tunisia will be completed and its results will be published in 2023, said Abdel Halim Qasmi, managing director of the general directorate of studies and agricultural development at the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries to TAP.
He added that the overall cost of the census was set at 25 million dinars, including 13.3 million dinars from the state budget, while the remaining amount would be guaranteed by a World Bank (WB) loan secured by Tunisia.
As part of the same programme, Tunisia launched the 3rd inventory of olive groves and a socio-economic survey of households in forest areas, according to FAO.
He added that the inventory will help evaluate forest and pastoral resources and study the socio-economic situation of the forest population, estimated at around 1 million inhabitants.
The inventory will also cover for the first time, the inventory of olive groves in Tunisia and will adopt a system of temporal monitoring as part of an additional approach to co-management of these resources, the same source specified.

Source: TAP News Agency