The initiative to develop the Global Strategy to improve agricultural and rural statistics (GSARS) came as a response to address developing countries’ lack of capacity to provide reliable statistical data on food and agriculture and to provide a blueprint for long-term sustainable agricultural statistical systems.
The Global Strategy is a comprehensive framework for improving the availability and use of agricultural and rural data, necessary for evidence-based decision making.
The implementation of Phase 1 of the Global Strategy has had significant impact on the agricultural statistical systems of many developing countries. The Global Strategy has become the point of reference on international standards in agricultural statistics, and the programme has demonstrated its ability to respond to the needs of the evolving international and regional agendas.
The second action plan aims to strengthen and modernize countries’ agricultural statistical systems in line with the Global Strategy’s initial principles and three pillars. Therefore, the Second Global Action Plan focuses on four technical areas and outputs that relate to the main aspects of the process and cycle of statistical production and use in support of food security and sustainable development policies, as illustrated below, and one arena related to the more effective implementation of the plan