7th Agricultural Census

The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) was established under the General Statistics (Reorganization) Act, 2011, which brought the Agricultural Census Organization (ACO) under its fold. This merger was a strategic move to unify statistical functions and improve the coordination of national data systems.

Functions of the Agriculture Census Wing (ACW)

The Agriculture Census Wing (ACW) within PBS is entrusted with the planning, execution, collection, analysis, and publication of data related to agricultural censuses and associated surveys. It also contributes to tracking progress on agriculture-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Traditionally, separate censuses were conducted on a decennial basis as follows:

  1. Agricultural Census – every 10 years , held in 1960, 1972, 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010.
  2. Agricultural Machinery Census –held in 1968, 1975, 1984, 1994, 2004.
  3. Livestock Census – held in 1976, 1986, 1996, 2006
  4. Mouza (Village) Census – 9 mouza census held till date, latest held in 2020

Three separate types of censuses were conducted in the country due to which enumerators used to visit similar types of households thrice during the course of 10 years, once for each census i.e. Agricultural, Livestock and Machinery Censuses. Under the circumstances, in 7th Governing Council of PBS meeting held on 10th January 2015, it was decided to merge Agricultural, Livestock, and Agricultural Machinery censuses into a single integrated Agricultural Census. This approach would obviate the need for multiple visits, acknowledging all relevant information to be gathered in one go, less efforts at minimum expenditure. 

Considering international best practices, PBS shifted to a quinquennial (five-year) cycle and adopted a unified approach. This model consolidates agricultural, livestock, and machinery data collection into a single, integrated operation.

Main Objectives of the Integrated Agricultural Census

  1. To furnish information about agrarian structure of the country for baseline data for food security and better livelihood of the population
  2. To provide estimates for livestock population
  3. Modern arming practices to enhance the productivity 

Delays in conduct of the 7th Agricultural Census:

The 7th Agricultural Census, originally due in 2015, was delayed due to multiple critical national statistical priorities. The immediate need to conduct the 6th Population and Housing Census in 2017 took precedence, followed by the necessity to first carry out the Mouza Census held in 2020, which serves as the foundational frame for sampling in agricultural statistics. This was essential for updating and revamping the sampling frame to enable a more efficient and integrated approach for the upcoming census. The delay was further extended by the implementation of the 7th Population and Housing Census in 2022, which was Pakistan’s first-ever digital census. These sequential activities, although necessary, pushed the Agricultural Census timeline forward, eventually culminating in the integrated and digital 7th Agricultural Census 2024–25.

During the Population and Housing Census, the Agricultural Census questionnaire was finalized through a rigorous consultative process led by the Technical Committee, which held multiple sessions to ensure accuracy, relevance, and alignment with national needs. A key milestone in this process was the Technical Committee Meeting held on July 6, 2021, where the structure and content of the questionnaire were finalized. 

Questionnaire Development: Experts reviewed and provided feedback on the structure and content of the questionnaire to ensure it captured comprehensive and relevant agricultural data.

7th Agricultural Census “Integrated Digital Count”

Following the Council of Common Interests (CCI) approval of the 7th Population and Housing Census 2023 results in August 2023, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) promptly initiated the long-awaited 7th Integrated Agricultural Census. To ensure smooth coordination and operational readiness, a high-level meeting with focal persons from federal ministries and provincial departments was held on December 20, 2023, focusing on implementation strategies and inter-agency collaboration. Immediately after, PBS launched the pre-planned activities under a cost-effective and innovative sample design, laying the foundation for Digital Counts. The project was rolled out on a war-footing, with multiple parallel operations initiated to meet the ambitious timelines entrusted to PBS.

PBS assigned the counterpart to workable groups with progressive result-oriented improvement day to day. Technical teams for software development, IT infrastructure and Networking, Administration, Logistics, Supportive IT Application, Subject Professionals, Coordination team, report writing, and data dissemination teams has been formulated for promptly disposition of Census activities in due course of time. Besides, formulation of updated questionnaires, Cleaning Check, and imputation rules documentation been framed and tested in the filed by conducting pilot surveys in different blocks of country to avoid the redundancy and inconsistency in collected data.