The design, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of livestock sector public and private
sector investments are based on evidence and information generated by a multitude of data
collection systems, including regular and one-off, or ad-hoc, surveys. With the objective of providing
guidance on effectively using available livestock data and indicators and designing effective national
livestock data systems, this note reviews the major survey methods that are regularly implemented by
developing country governments, including:
• The agricultural / livestock census;
• Agricultural and livestock sample surveys;
• Household budget surveys;
• Living standards measurement studies;
• Administrative records or routine data;
• Others, such as the population and housing census and labour surveys.
It identifies the major livestock-related indicators that the various surveys – for which the prime
target rarely is livestock - are likely to generate. Understanding these data sources is critical for
decision makers to make appropriate use of available data and indicators, and is the first step in
designing and setting up a comprehensive livestock data collection system. The note concludes by
highlighting that a system of livestock statistics must be seen as part of a broader framework of
statistical collection on a national level and that the effective integration of livestock data, whether
derived through broader agricultural surveys, administrative records or one-off surveys, is essential
for ensuring quality data which can feed into policy formulation or designing effective investments
in the livestock sector.