Micro Versus Macro Approach on
Agricultural Income Measurements
for Rural Households in Italian
Official Statistics: an Application
for Albania.
Domenico Ciaccia, Andrea Morreale, Edoardo Pizzoli
Rome, 11 june 2009
Developments in agricultural households' income
statistics of EU
• 1985: Early EU studies and related statistics on agricultural
households income
• 1988: Project approved by the Committee of agricultural
statistics of European Commission, directed by Berkeley Hill
• 1998: Further systematization of Istat approach
• 2004: Action Tapas 2002 in Istat financed by Eurostat
Rome, 11 june 2009
The state of art at European and international level
• Several studies in Europe (1988 - 2000): reports by Eurostat
• International seminar of Eurostat (1996)
• OECD commitment on agricultural income measurement.
Followed by Unece, World Bank and Fao
• IAHS series update: from both micro and macro sources.
Suspended by Eurostat
• Project "Feasibility study on the achievement of the
European Statistics on Income of agricultural households”
Rome, 11 june 2009
Agricultural households' income in Italian national
accounts by Istat
• Until early 2004: the Central Directorate of National Accounts
in Istat has regularly sent to Eurostat agricultural households’
income statistics (years 1984 – 2001)
•Complete estimates are available for type A and type B of
agricultural households
•Households number of both types is constantly changing
Rome, 11 june 2009
Agricultural households' income in Italian national
accounts by Istat
• Households of type A are steadily declining, while those of
type B are growing:
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
Ye
ar
s
19
84
19
86
19
88
19
90
19
92
19
94
19
96
19
98
20
00
0
Rome, 11 june 2009
Number of
households Type A
Number of
households Type B
Agricultural households' income in Italian national
accounts by Istat
• Number of agricultural households in micro and macro
approach:
Description
N° households type "A "
(thousands)
Year
1998
1999
2000
Micro approach
391
297
294
Macro approach
352
330
314
Micro approach
679
511
528
Macro approach
440
441
450
N° households type "B"
(in thousands)
Rome, 11 june 2009
Agricultural households' income in Italian national
accounts by Istat
• Net disposable income by type of households, macro
approach (1984 – 2001):
40
35
30
Net disposable income
(1000 euro ) Type A
Net disposable income
(1000 euro ) Type B
25
20
15
Net disposable income
(1000 euro ) Extra
10
Net disposable income
(1000 euro ) Total
5
Rome, 11 june 2009
00
20
98
19
96
19
94
19
92
19
90
19
88
19
86
19
84
19
Ye
ar
s
0
Future of the two approaches: macro- and microeconomic
• The sample of households is in both cases not sufficient
• The sample should be recalibrated to provide valuable
information at micro level, on agricultural and rural groups
• The micro approach must be better calibrated to highlight
income differences of both types of households
Rome, 11 june 2009
Italian experience in Albania
• Twinning project "Albanian Statistics towards the EU“ (2003
– 2005): construction of agricultural accounts for Albania
(Istat)
• Country table of resources & uses, in values and in
quantities: to improve the calculation of production account
• Prices and quantities produced of agricultural products: to
calculate accounts at current and constant prices in line with
EU-Eurostat standards
Rome, 11 june 2009
Evolution of agricultural sector in Albania (2003 – 2005)
• Agriculture still important despite economic growth
• Up and down of prices and production
• Supply almost exclusively for domestic market
•Total agricultural' households income estimates (Year 2004),
Composition (%):
% Value
Items
Income from agricultural activity
Other income (salaries, social benefits etc.)
Remittances from emigrants
TOT.
(*)- elaborations on Instat data
Rome, 11 june 2009
2004
80,0
5,0
15,0
100,0
Conclusions
• In the near future: it is necessary to extend agricultural
households’ income indicators at regional level (NUTS 2) by
means of new data available
• There should be also more attention to type “B” of
agricultural households, that is a vulnerable group and in
constant growth
• Possible developments: priority given to agricultural
households income statistics in Eurostat
•It is important to guide policies at territorial level
•What emerges from the evolution of households groups:
poorest population is rural, although the gap with the urban
one is steadily declining
•In short: the experience of Albania is an example of
application and exportability of Istat methodology in other
realities even if with a limited availability of data
Rome, 11 june 2009
References
• Barberis, C. (1981) Povertà e distribuzione dei redditi nelle
campagne italiane. In Barberis et al. La povertà del mondo
rurale in Italia. Franco Angeli.
• Ciaccia, D. (1996) Il nuovo SEC e il settore Agricoltura,
paragraph 4.3, Annali di statistica - verso il nuovo sistema di
Contabilità nazionale, Istat.
• EURISPES (2003) La povertà in agricoltura. Una mappa del
rischio e del disagio rurale in Italia.
• EUROSTAT (1988a) Revenu global des mènages agricoles,
thème 5, Sèrie D, B. Hill.
• EUROSTAT (1988b) Revenu agricole 1987: analyse de l’indice
du revenu sectoriel, thème 5 sèrie D, Chapitre V (Revenu
global disponible des mènages agricoles);
• EUROSTAT (1989) Manuel sur les comptes èconomiques
pour l’agriculture et la sylviculture, thème 5, Sèrie E;
• EUROSTAT (1995a) Système Europèen des Comptes: SEC
1995.
• EUROSTAT (1995b) Manuel du revenu global des menages
agricoles (Rev.1), 10 Theme 5, agricolture Serie E metodes.
References
• EUROSTAT (2000), Incomes of Agricultural Sector
Households , Luxembourg.
• ISTAT (1990-2008) Valore aggiunto dell’agricoltura per
regione, Collana d’informazione, n. 15.
• ISTAT (1985) I consumi delle famiglie. Anno 1984 Supplemento Bollettino mensile di statistica, n. 16.
• ISTAT (1995) Occupazione e redditi da lavoro dipendente.
Anni 1980-1994, in Collana d’informazione, n. 19.
• ISTAT (1998) Il Reddito delle Famiglie Agricole, Argomenti, n.
11.
• ISTAT-EUROSTAT (2004) Azione TAPAS 2002, by Ciaccia et al.
• Militello, A. (1987) Un confronto tra redditi dichiarati al fisco e
redditi stimati dalla Contabilità Nazionale per gli anni 1981 e
1982, in Quaderni di discussione, n. 87, Istat.