In support to the 2022 Census of Agriculture and Fisheries (2022 CAF), President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. issued Proclamation No. 272 declaring September 2023 as the National Agriculture and Fisheries Census Month.

Beginning on 04 September 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) will conduct the nationwide census, pursuant to Republic Act No. 10625 (Philippine Statistical Act of 2013).

The CAF is a large-scale government undertaking conducted every ten years. It is geared towards the collection and compilation of basic information on the agriculture and fishery sectors in the country. The data to be collected in this census will serve as important bases of policies, plans, and programs for the country’s socio-economic development. The 2022 CAF is the seventh in a series of decennial agricultural census and the sixth in the decennial census of fisheries in the country since 1903. It adopts the guidelines outlined in the World Programme for the Census of Agriculture 2020 (WCA 2020), as recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN). The 2022 CAF will gather in general detailed information on all the agricultural, aquaculture, and fishing activities/operations in the country during the census reference period – 01 January to 31 December 2022. Data to be gathered include type of activity, legal status of the holing/farm, main purpose of the operation, location of the farm, among others.

PSA will train and deploy nationwide about 16 thousand trained census-takers (enumerators), four thousand team supervisors, and three thousand area supervisors together with the PSA regular to undertake this gigantic task of gathering relevant information from all agriculture and fisheries operators.

Proclamation No. 272 enjoins all individual citizens and residents especially the agriculture and fisheries operations including government and private entities duly established and authorized to conduct business in the Philippines, such as stock and non-stock corporations, partnerships, and cooperatives are enjoined to cooperate with the PSA in the conduct of the 2022 CAF, by providing truthful and complete responses to the census questions. Moreover, Proclamation No. 272 directs all agencies and instrumentalities of the national government, including government-owned or -controlled corporations, state universities and colleges, and all local government units, nongovernment organizations, professional associations, and the private sector to actively participate and provide support and assistance to the PSA in connection with the conduct of the 2022 CAF.

“CAFarmer, CAFisher, Tayo ang Bida!”

CLAIRE DENNIS S. MAPA, PhD
Undersecretary
National Statistician and Civil Registrar General

¹Proclamation No. 272 Declaring September 2023 as the National Agriculture and Fisheries Census Month