This document summarizes the use of technology for data capture and compilation in agricultural censuses. It discusses computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI) software, which allows enumerators to record survey responses directly onto tablets or computers instead of paper. CAPI offers advantages like easier survey management, faster data processing, and higher data quality through features like skip patterns and validation. However, CAPI also has disadvantages such as high upfront costs and reliance on connectivity. The document then reviews several popular CAPI platforms and provides examples of countries that have implemented CAPI for agricultural censuses.

1. Regional Roundtable on
World Programme for the Census of Agriculture 2020
Budapest, Hungary
3-7 April 2017
Use of Technology for field data
capture and compilation
Technical session 16c
Michael Rahija
Global Strategy
Jairo Castano
Senior Statistician
Leader, Agricultural Census and Survey Team
FAO Statistics Division

2.  Overview of CAPI: description,
advantages, disadvantages, products on
the market
 Overview of Survey Solutions features
 Country examples: Estonia and Latvia
Overview

3. Computer Assisted Personal Interview
(CAPI) software allows recording
responses on a computer or tablet instead
of paper.
What is CAPI?

4. • Easier Survey Management
• Reduced variables costs
(No transport costs, no storage costs, no printing costs, no
data-entry costs)
• Reduced time from data collection to analysis
and reporting
• Higher quality data
(Enforced skip patterns, validation conditions, look-up
tables)
What are the advantages of CAPI?

5. Novel question types
 Geo reference, photos, barcodes scanning (for national IDs)
Closer field monitoring
 Export paradata for monitoring activities during
interviews (e.g. start & end time)
 Almost real time export of microdata
Easier to implement changes to questionnaire
 No need to send questionnaires back and forth to field
What are the advantages of CAPI?

6. High fixed cost
 Can be reduced by sharing use with other
surveys
Requires more preparation time - programming
and testing questionnaire, procurement
 Time savings on back-end from no data entry
compensates
Many times requires connectivity
 Risks can be reduced by using 2 sim cards,
back-up paper questionnaires, etc.
Others: vulnerability to weather, batteries and
access to power for charging
What are disadvantages of CAPI?

7. Census and Survey Processing System (CSPro) Developed
by the US census bureau and funded primarily by USAID.
Widely used, but lacks survey management tools and requires
programming knowledge. FREE + programming costs
Open Data Kit (ODK): Core developers at UoW – Dpt. Of
Computer Science. Open-sourced, funded partially through
donations of users. FREE+ programming costs
My Survey Solutions: Development supported by the GS,
and first version released in 09.2013. Closed source, but
integrates data management tools, and requires little to no
knowledge of programming. FREE
CAPI Products

8. • Global Strategy has implemented small
sample surveys in Tanzania, Indonesia,
and Jamaica
• World Bank in partnership w/ NSOs have
implemented surveys reaching 200K
respondents in Malawi, 400K in Uganda,
and 2.7 million in South Africa.
FAO and Survey Solutions

9.  User friendly survey management system
built right into the software.
 Survey designer that requires no
programming skills
 Cloud based data storage and transfer
 Geo references questions (holding location)
 Can accommodate any type of question
 User-friendly Android application for data
entry
Survey Solutions Features

10.  Documentation on every part of the system
available
 E-learning course available online (13
modules)
 Data export available in SPSS and STATA
formats.
 DDI compliant metadata automatically
generated.
 Automatic paradata tabulation for field
monitoring
*DDI: Data Documentation Initiative, an int’l standard for describing statistical data
Survey Solutions Features (cont’d)

11. • The majority of the census data were collected in
an electronic environment.
• All holdings had the possibility to complete an
electronic questionnaire online (CASI)
• Those that did not use this option were visited by
an enumerator who collected the data using CAPI.
• Electronic data collection enabled the pre-filling
of questionnaires on the basis of PRIA data
(Estonian Agricultural Registers and Information
Board). Respondents could, if necessary, correct
any pre-filled data.
Country Experience
Estonia - Agricultural Census 2010

12. • In the Latvia Agricultural Census 2010 the
following data collection methods were used:
 Face-to-face interviews with laptops (CAPI)
 Telephone interviews (CATI)
 Web data collection (CAWI/CASI) - first time used
 Data collection by mail.
Latvia- Agricultural Census 2010
Country Experience
• The combined use of CAPI, CATI, CAWI and
mail proved to be very effective and saved
financial resources. It was possible to obtain the
preliminary results rather quickly.

13. Country experiences on use of CAPI,
CATI, CASI and GPS technologies in
census
Country
name
Year of census
CAPI/GPS/PDA/
CATI/CASI
Estonia 2010 CAPI, CAWI
France 2010 CAPI
Latvia 2010 CAPI, CATI,CASI,
Malta 2010 CAPI
Poland 2010 CAPI, CATI,CASI
Slovenia 2010 CAPI, CATI
Lithuania 2010 CASI
Netherland 2010 CASI
Iceland 2010 CASI
Austria 2010 CASI
Finlanda 2010 CASI
Suedia 2010 CASI, CATI
Mozambique 2009/2010 CAPI, GPS
Venezuela 2008 CAPI, GPS
Argentina 2008 CAPI
Colombia 2014 CAPI
Brazil 2006 CAPI
Mexico 2007 CAPI
Canada 2011 CASI
USA 2012 CASI
Australia 2011 CASI
Jordan 2007 CAPI
Thailand 2013 CAPI
Iran 2014 CAPI
Countries are increasingly
using IT technology in
agricultural censuses for:
 data collection (CAPI,
CASI, CATI);
 identification of location
for field operation of
enumerators (GPS);
 online monitoring of the
progress in field
operations in real time.

14. Thank You