7105.0.55.004 - National Agricultural Statistics Review - Final Report, 2015  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 29/07/2015  First Issue
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQS)

WHAT IS THE NASR ABOUT?

The National Agricultural Statistics Review (NASR) assessed the agricultural statistics system in Australia and its adequacy for informing decision-making in the industry both now and into the future. The review identified a range of opportunities for addressing issues in the Australian agricultural statistical system and for positioning the system to align with international best practice.

WHO HAS UNDERTAKEN THE NASR?

The NASR has been a joint project between the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES).

WHY HAVE THE ABS AND ABARES BEEN LEADING THE NASR?

A range of organisations provide statistical data and other information to inform decision making in the agricultural sector. The ABS and the ABARES have led the NASR as Australia's major collectors of official agricultural statistics in Australia and as Australia's national statistical organisation and independent research bureau respectively.

WHAT HAS THE NASR ACHIEVED?
The NASR identified:

    • priority information requirements of stakeholders
    • where those information needs are not met by existing data sources
    • overlaps and inconsistencies in existing information requirements
    • opportunities for efficiencies in the national agricultural statistical information system.
WHAT IS THE ESSENTIAL STATISTICAL ASSETS (ESA) FOR AUSTRALIA AND HOW IS IT DIFFERENT TO THE NASR?
The ESA for Australia initiative is being led by the ABS as a key National Statistical Service (NSS) strategy. The aim of this initiative is to allow for effective prioritisation of investment, focus and effort within the national statistical system, by identifying those essential official statistical assets that are critical to decision-making in a complex and sometimes fragmented information environment across Australia. The NASR has been an assessment of the ‘agriculture’ component of the Australian statistical system and extends beyond official statistics to provide a holistic understanding of the agricultural statistics system ability to inform decision making by governments, industry, and the community.

WHAT IS THE NATIONAL STATISTICAL SYSTEM?
The national statistical system is the grouping of organisations within Australia that collect, process and disseminate official statistics (government statistics).

WHAT IS THE AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS SYSTEM?
The agricultural statistics system incorporates the Australian agriculture, fisheries and forestry industries and includes:

    • agricultural statistical assets
    • users, producers, custodians and providers of agricultural statistical assets and information
    • standards, frameworks and classifications
    • physical systems
    • coordination and governance frameworks.
WHAT ARE 'AGRICULTURAL STATISTICAL ASSETS'?
Agricultural statistical assets are datasets and the statistics that are drawn from them. Agricultural statistics are broadly taken to mean the data, information, statistics or other knowledge that can be used to provide insights into agricultural activity (including fisheries and forestry activity). In scope have been:
    • agriculture, fisheries and forestry censuses and surveys
    • commissioned research
    • reports containing information, data or statistics
    • administrative data
    • datasets residing in any agency's databases.
WHY ARE NON-OFFICIAL STATISTICS IN-SCOPE OF THE NASR?
In order to gain a holistic picture of the statistics collected, produced and used for decision making with respect to agriculture, the NASR’s scope has not been limited by official statistics. This means that in addition to official agricultural statistics which are collected and produced by Australian and state/territory governments and agencies, statistical assets collected and produced by non-government organisations have been included in the scope of the NASR.

WHO DID NASR CONSULT WITH AND HOW DID THEY PROVIDE FEEDBACK?
NASR consulted widely across Australian and state/territory governments and agencies, industry, research and development corporations, academia and the community. Further detail about the NASR consultation process can be found in Appendix 1 and a full list of contributors in Appendix 2.

IS THIS REPORT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND IF SO, HOW CAN IT BE ACCESSED?
This final report is available to be viewed and/or downloaded by the public on the ABS website.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN AFTER THE NASR?
The Australian Government, in consultation with stakeholders, will consider the actions and initiatives for improvement of the agricultural statistical system contained in this report.