Abstract

This document describes the design and challenges associated with the construction and consolidation of the Area Frame, as well as its integration with the List Frame, which together constitute the fundamental basis for future surveys related to agricultural statistics in Mexico. The main technical challenge lies in the segmentation of the national territory and the stratification of the segments according to their agricultural intensity, understood as the proportion of agricultural land relative to the total area of each segment. To achieve this, level 7 of the geo-statistical grid developed by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) is used, consisting of cells measuring 4,218 meters per side, covering the entire country. Segment stratification is carried out through the evaluation of various strategies that combine high-resolution satellite imagery, administrative records such as the agricultural frontier from SIAP and irrigation districts from CONAGUA, as well as the application of statistical clustering methods to group segments into five strata differentiated by their level of agricultural intensity. Additionally, polygons of urban areas and water bodies available in INEGI’s National Geostatistical Framework are used to exclude areas that are not relevant to the agricultural sector. In the second stage, the stratified grid is linked to the national land parcel vector. This association allows for the connection of land parcels with production units identified in the 2022 Agricultural Census. As a result, a relationship is established between the stratified grid segments and Agricultural Production Units, and segments that could only be linked to rural land parcels are identified. This process represents a significant step forward in improving the quality and coverage of agricultural surveys in Mexico, by providing a more accurate and representative framework of the country's territory and agricultural activity. Finally, the area frame and the list frame will serve as the sampling frame for the 2025 National Agricultural Survey.