The Planning Authority is a central administrative division of the Ministry and is responsible for agricultural planning and development and for the rural settlements.

The authority deals with medium and long term agricultural planning and operates according to the Ministry's objectives regarding the allocation of production tools and resources to the farmers and the rural advancement and development. In addition, the authority deals with planning programs for planned settlements, and agricultural projects for the unplanned settlements. It assists with rural advancement and development from the building and planning aspects, and in the field of diversifying employment while attaching special importance to rural tourism, business coaching, community expansion in the Moshavim and Kibbutzim and organizational changes in the rural settlements.

As part of the activity of the Planning Authority, and for the purpose of performing tasks, the authority is responsible for the Israeli agricultural database. The data, on many levels, allows the authority to make decisions regarding allocation of resources on an individual level (the individual farmer, settlement or Regional Council).

In addition, the Planning Authority runs a department that deals with collection of data regarding target markets of the fresh produce, and about the manufacturers who compete with Israel in those markets.