FAO to support Kyrgyzstan in conducting agricultural census

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) is supporting Kyrgyzstan in conducting a nationwide agricultural census.

As part of its technical cooperation programme, FAO is providing the country's National Statistical Committee with the support and methodological guidance needed to organise and conduct the national agricultural census.

The data collected during the census will provide an overview of the state of the country's agricultural sector and are essential for planning and developing agricultural policies, research and development, and monitoring the impact of agriculture on the environment.

«According to FAO recommendations, agricultural censuses should be conducted once every 10 years», — said Oleg Guchgeldiev, FAO Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic.

He also noted that in order to obtain the most accurate data, the census should cover producers who together account for at least 95-98% of the country's total agricultural output.

In March 2024, the Kyrgyz Cabinet of Ministers decided to prepare and conduct an agricultural census. The census will cover state and collective agricultural enterprises (including subsidiary farms of educational institutions, industrial, transport, construction and other enterprises and organisations), peasant (farmer) households, individual entrepreneurs engaged in agriculture, and personal subsidiary farms of the population (including collective gardens and vegetable gardens) located within the country.

The agricultural census is expected to take place from 1 to 20 November 2025 and will include a one-time count of livestock and poultry.

Between 18 November and 7 December, the National Statistics Committee successfully conducted a pilot census in the Issyk-Ata district of the Chui region and the Aravan district of the Osh region to test the census mechanisms. To scale up activities related to the agricultural census, FAO will provide technical assistance to improve the methodology, update the data processing programme and train specialists.