SDI: From First Principles

1
SDI From First Principles

• Dozie Ezigbalike
• Economic Commission for Africa
• Joint SDI/NICI Working Session
• Addis Ababa, 20 November 2006

2
Outline

• Geoinformation in Development Information
• SDI from first principles
• From fundamental data to policies
• The Components
• Your Role

3
What is Geoinformation?

• Information that anchors decisions to space or
  location
• Whatever we do, whatever happens, happens
  somewhere
• Development decision questions
• What? Why? When? How?
• Where?

4
Where Questions

• Where are the input factors?
• Where are the population that will benefit?
• Where are the markets for the products?
• Where are the infrastructure elements, utilities,
  etc?
• Estimated that 80 of all human decisions involve
  a where? question

5
Typical Development Information Requirements

• Sectoral examples only

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Agriculture and Food Security

• Land cover
• Soil types
• Topography
• Hydrography
• Rainfall
• Demographics
• Infrastructure
• Suitability maps
• Yield statistics
• Prices, etc

7
Education Planning

• Schools locations
• Demographics
• Infrastructure
• Utilities

8
Transportation Planning

• Roads, railways, navigable water systems, air
  links
• Demographics and settlements
• Industrial and Socio-economic establishments
• Topography
• Hydrography
• Traffic flows

9
Mining Mineral Development

• Land cover
• Soil chemistry
• Topography
• Rock formations and physical properties
• Human settlements

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Water Supply

• Hydrography
• Water bodies, rivers and streams
• Aquifers ground water
• Topography
• Land cover and soil types

11
Health Planning

• Hospitals locations
• Settlements and demographics
• Disease vectors
• Environmental factors
• Transport infrastructure

12
Housing Development

• Demographics
• Infrastructure utilities
• Topography
• Building materials

13
Security and Emergency Planning

• Environmental conditions and changes
• Demographics and threats
• Hazards
• Location of hospitals, police, safety
  installations
• Crime statistics location-specific
• Transport infrastructure

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Common Feature of the Examples

• Geography or location
• All the information products exemplified would
  not be complete without the location attribute
• They need to be localized
• Where are the input factors?
• Where are the population that will benefit? Or at
  risk?
• Where are the markets for the products?
• Where are the infrastructure elements, utilities,
  etc?
• How do we move (products, services) from source
  to destination?
• What areas are suitable (or unsuitable) for
  specific activities?

15
e-Government

• Streamlined electronic delivery of services to
  achieve
• Improved customer service, faster response times,
  efficient operations, lower transaction costs,
  more informed decisions, improved maintenance,
  management and assessment of assets and
  facilities,
• Also needs to answer where questions
• Customer locations even after you order online,
  the physical product or service still has to be
  delivered
• Citizen locations we still have to allocate
  students to schools, voters to polling stations,
  patients to hospitals, based on the
  distribution of population
• Transport infrastructure and facilities

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Poverty Reduction

• Targeted activities to improve the lives of
  people and reduce number of the poor
• Where are
• Population classified as poor according to
  specified criteria
• Conditions that are adverse to well-being
  isolate factors or indicators that contribute to
  poverty map areas where they exist
  (alternatively, identify factors conducive to
  well-being and identify areas where they are
  absent)

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Geoinformation

• The information used to answer those where
  questions is called geographic information or
  geoinformation
• Also called spatial or geospatial information
• Traditionally presented as thematic maps
• Base maps
• Vegetation
• Soil maps
• Land use/land cover, etc

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Problem with paper based maps

• Predefined map themes
• Area of interest could be at the edge of map
  sheet
• Incomplete visualization
• Supply push
• the information provider decides what themes to
  map
• what details to include
• Prone to clutter with more information
• Overlay not possible
• Dated

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ICT Enabling

• Recall that maps are inventories in analog form
• Move to digital environment and create databases
• With regular database query functions
• Provide for numerical analysis of the data
• Including socio-economic indices
• Overlay of various thematic layers
• Incorporation of geographic positions in the
  analysis
• Also provide for visual analysis
• Allow for a variety of information products
• Including maps to normal cartographic standards
• ?Geographic Information Systems

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Spatial Data layers
Population Distribution
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Analysis, map preparation and presentation
(1/2)(Dieleman 2006)
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Analysis, map preparation and presentation (2/2)
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Justifying Geo-Spatial Data Infrastructures

• Cooperative Multi-Stakeholder Arrangements for
  Spatial Data Production, Management and
  Dissemination

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Produce Once, Use Many Times

• Geoinformation content requires special field and
  lab operations to define the location against
  which data are collected
• Operations Surveying and mapping,
  photogrammetry, remote sensing, geodesy, etc
• Location entities reference frames, point
  coordinates, land parcels and administrative
  units
• Different applications need to cross reference
  data with one another
• They refer to the same database entities
• No single agency can satisfy its geographic data
  needs on its own
• Data collected for one purpose or project can be
  used for other purposes and projects

25
High Duplication Potential(Burkina Avian Flu
Example)
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The Concept of Geo-Spatial Data Infrastructure

• Put in place policies, resources and structures
  to make available geographic information
  technologies easily accessible to decision makers
  and the community
• When they need it
• Where they need it
• In a form they can use it (almost) immediately
• Help them make sense of it

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What is a Geo-Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI)?

• Critical mass of processes, policies, standards,
  enabling technologies, mechanisms and key
  datasets required to make geospatial data readily
  available to the growing community of end-users
• -- The SDI Cookbook (version 2.0)

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SDI Involves

• Cooperating organizations and individuals
• Following mutually accepted standards
• Developing common base themes of data
• Establishing policies and plans that ensure the
  flow of data between the different agencies
• Using electronic technology to help find and
  share geographic information

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Summary of Requirements for Development
Information

• Agriculture and food security
• Land cover, soil types, topography, hydrography,
  rainfall, demographics, infrastructure,
  Suitability maps, yield statistics, etc
• Health
• Hospitals locations, settlements and
  demographics, disease vectors, environmental
  factors distribution, infrastructure, etc.
• Education
• Schools locations, demographics, infrastructure
  utilities, etc.
• Housing
• Demographics, infrastructure utilities,
  topography, building materials, etc.

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Development Info (2 of 2)

• Water Supply
• Hydrography, aquifers ground water, topography,
  etc.
• Mining Minerals
• Land cover, soil chemistry, topography, rock
  formations and physical properties, etc.
• Infrastructure Development
• Demographics and settlements, socio-economic
  establishments, topography, hydrography, soil
  types, etc

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Just-in-Case Maps

• Most development information are spatial in
  nature (blue data sets)
• Best presented as maps
• Before the information age
• NMOs determine usual themes
• Estimate periodic demands
• Prepares stockpiles of maps at predetermined
  scales Just in case people need them
• Maps are then issued or sold to users
• Most recent changes, developments and conditions
  would not be represented

32
Digital Cartography

• Confluence of ICT and geography ? digital
  cartography
• Data are stored in databases
• Databases include location attributes
• Admin units, enumeration units, coordinates, etc
• Digital process makes production easy and fast
• Previously unimaginable map themes are now
  possible
• Users ask for more as they become more aware of
  possibilities

33
Just in Time Maps

• In the digital environment, maps are produced as
  and when needed
• just in time for the decision to be made
• with most current data from databases that are
  continuously updated

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Some Information Society Concepts

• Use of appropriate information in decision making
  
• (Note use, not mere availability correct use
  at that!)
• Improves the quality of the decision
• Reduces the need for other inputs, e.g., money,
  time, labour, etc
• Therefore information use should be made
  explicit, quantified and managed like other
  resources
• Cost of production and use should be identified
  and quantified

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Re-use Data

• Data and information can be copied and
  disseminated without loss
• Therefore, we can re-use data and information
  products
• Make maximum use of available data and info
  products
• Adopt cooperative, multi-stakeholder approach to
  production, management, and dissemination of data
• Must have appropriate policies, standards and
  institutional arrangements

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Introducing SDI

• From first principles

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Fundamental Spatial Data

• Geoinformation content requires special
  operations to produce
• Geodesy, surveying and mapping, photogrammetry,
  remote sensing, etc
• These operations define the database entities
  reference frames, point coordinates, land parcels
  and administrative units
• Different applications need to cross reference
  data with one another
• They refer to the same database entities
  location or space
• The information that defines the entities are
  therefore cross-cutting and fundamental
• Concept of fundamental data
• Should be produced once and used by all users to
  ensure cross referencing of information products

38
Thematic Data

• Different line specialists still need
  purpose-specific data layers
• But based on the same fundamental or base layer
• These thematic data sets are best produced and
  maintained by people or organisations that use
  them regularly
• Therefore agencies and organisations should still
  maintain operational data needed to fulfill their
  assigned mandates

39
Sharing Data

• However, data collected for one purpose or
  project can be used for other purposes and
  projects
• No single agency can satisfy all its data needs
  on its own, especially geographic data
• Therefore thematic layers should also be shared
  with potential outside users
• To reduce duplication costs to community at large
• Reduce chances of inconsistency in decisions

40
80 common content in spatial data used by three
ministries in this Burkina avian flu scenario
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New Map Themes

• Previously unthinkable map themes now common
• HIV prevalence
• Poverty maps
• Civil disturbances
• Food security
• Crime analysis and reporting
• Disasters
• Therefore need to plan data collection activities
  to include location of events or phenomena
  geo-enabled or location-sensitive

42
Community Participation

• There is also increasing emphasis on community
  participation in decision making
• Better planning and more chance of successful
  implementation
• More efficient delivery of services
• Transparency and good governance
• Value addition products and services industries
  develop
• Increased activity in the economy
• Job creation
• Poverty alleviation
• Reduced transaction cost
• Therefore controlled public access to data and
  information resources

43
Data Access Policy

• Need clear statements on rights and constraints
  on data sets
• Definition of access rights and constraints on
  data sets
• Definition of user communities or groups
• Assignment of access rights to groups

44
Metadata

• To use data produced by another person/agency,
  potential users need to know
• That the data resource exists
• How the data was produced
• When it was produced or last updated
• Why it was produced
• How to access the data
• Any constraints, restrictions or special
  conditions for access and/or use

45
Metadata (2 of 2)

• Only possible if every data producers describes
  every data product in a standard, field-based
  format
• This standard description is called metadata ?
  data about data
• Potential users consult metadata to determine
  suitability of data for intended use, and access
  procedure

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Clearinghouse Services

• The metadata collections are best maintained
• By the producers of the data
• As an integral part of the data production
  process
• Otherwise, danger of not being done at all
• But they should be accessible to potential users
• Always available and easy to access

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Clearinghouse (2 of 2)

• Result on-line metadata clearinghouse services
• Search and discover what exists, where and how to
  access
• Publish and advertise what you have and do
• Field level, location and other criteria-based
  searches
• Need stable internet and telecom facilities

48
Data Warehouse

• Data warehouse copy (extract) of data
  specifically structured for online access
• Leads to unified view of data from wide variety
  of databases and sources
• Mapping to single naming conventions and uniform
  representation
• Resolution of errors, noise and missing data
• Distributed and/or centralized subsets as
  appropriate
• Federated database systems

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Interoperability and Standards

• Requires that data sets and services be
  interoperable
• Only if all producers adhere to agreed standards
• Metadata standards, data models, encoding,
  presentation, transfer, naming conventions, etc
• Therefore need national standards bureau to
  review international standards and create and/or
  adopt national profile

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Custodianship Principle

• Need to review data used to fulfill mandates
• Identify data used by many organizations
• Identify user with most vested interest in data
  being maintained
• Assign custodianship responsibilities as
  appropriate
• Adjust budget allocations to reflect changed
  responsibilities

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Legal Framework

• Review of existing laws and regulations
• Legislative mandates to relevant institutions
• Creation of mechanism for coordination
• Monitor compliance with standards and guidelines
• Broker requests for changes to access
  rights/constraints
• Resolve conflicts
• Oversee policy implementation

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Where is the GIS?

• At the end of the day, data has to be analyzed
  and processed
• The GIS provides the tool for that
• But it is only a tool
• Will not work if the policies, custodianship and
  access issues are not in place
• Trend towards web-based mapping
• Therefore internet bandwidth and connectivity
  issues

53
Paradigm Shift

• What we need is to change paradigm
• From mapping as a standalone activity
• To mapping as a data collection activity
• At the beginning of the knowledge management
  continuum
• Organize data so that maps can be produced as and
  when needed
• Just in time maps on demand

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Paradigm shift (2 of 2)

• Recognize that every data set can be displayed as
  a thematic map
• Provided it has a spatial attribute, e.g., admin
  region, coordinate
• Move beyond single agency needs to community
  needs
• Provide basic framework and thematic components
  for JIT maps
• Empower users to do as much as possible by
  themselves

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Policies

• Put in place policies, resources and structures
  to make spatial information available to decision
  makers and the community
• When they need it
• Where they need it
• In a form they can use it (almost) immediately
• Help them make sense of it
• That is best done by adopting an infrastructure
  approach
• Justification the data that supports 80 of all
  decisions should be part of our infrastructure
• Just like roads, bridges, telecommunications, etc

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So What is a Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI)?

• The SDI provides a basis for spatial data
  discovery, evaluation, and application for users
  and providers within all levels of government,
  the commercial sector, the non-profit sector,
  academia and by citizens in general
• -- The SDI Cookbook
• The technology, policies, standards, and
  institutional arrangements necessary to acquire,
  process, store, distribute, and improve the
  utilization of geospatial datafrom many
  different sources and for a wide group of
  potential users
• -- US Exec Order 12906

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NICI Stakeholders revisited

• Government and Parastatals
• Private Sector National and International
• Regulatory Bodies
• Telecommunication Operators
• NGOs and Civil Society
• Geoinformation community
• Academia, Research Centers, IT Experts
• Regional and International Organizations

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Why Emphasize Geoinformation

• Cross-cutting content
• Recall the estimate of 80 of all decisions being
  spatial
• Needed to analyze and implement other sectoral
  applications
• So the GI component should be part of the
  Infostructure of AISI/NICI
• The GI community have long identified need for
  information policies and infrastructure
• From cadastres, through land information systems,
  multipurpose cadastres to spatial data
  infrastructures

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Commonalities

• SDI and NICI are under the same AISI umbrella
• Supported by the same division in ECA
• Duplication of efforts in the processes
• Potential for conflicts in policies if not
  coordinated
• Therefore, need to integrate or link the two
  processes

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Four Integration/Linking Scenarios

• Dual initiation
• Dual revision
• NICI Correction (SDI Initiation)
• NICI Initiation (SDI Correction)

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Recommendation for Linking (1/2)

• Include SDI related targets in NICI strategies
• Develop full SDI document as technical annex to
  NICI document
• Or as companion/parallel document to be read
  together
• Not to swamp main NICI document with
  subject-specific provisions
• Allows flexibility for specific technical details
• E.g. surveying and mapping issues

62
Recommendations (2/2)

• Precedence for other stakeholder communities that
  may need more technical provisions
• Use sub committee structure (with technical
  working groups as appropriate) to manage SDI
  specific issues
• E.g., reference frames and other surveying and
  mapping aspects, geospatial interoperability
  issues

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Your Role in Developing SDI

• What can you do?

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Role of the Geomatics Community

• Imagine if various specialists could concentrate
  on
• Food security planning
• Ground water management
• Health and sanitation issues
• Land management
• Whatever else you do
• without worrying about the availability of
  map information
• Imagine further that all the data you have are
  used to their maximum potential
• Contribute to overall economic growth
• Increase your visibility and prestige

65
Your roles

• It is possible
• If potential sources of information are known to
  everybody clearinghouse and metadata management
• And easily accessible
• And even more so if interwoven into the fabric of
  society
• Like an infrastructure
• But you have to participate in building the
  infrastructure

66
A Quote from Gore

• The satellite is capable of taking a
  complete photograph of the entire planet every
  two weeks, and its been collecting data for more
  than 20 years. In spite of the great need for
  that information, the vast majority of those
  images have never fired a single neuron in a
  single human brain. Instead, they are stored in
  electronic silos of data. We used to have an
  agricultural policy where we stored grain in
  midwestern silos and let it rot while millions of
  people starved to death. Now we have an
  insatiable hunger for knowledge. Yet a great deal
  of data remains unused.
• Al Gore
• This could be happening to your data collections

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And the ICT Community?

• The Geo in Geoinformation is only an adjective
• Therefore your resources and tools must also
  serve that community
• But they have special needs
• Surveying and mapping activities to generate data
• Special treatment of data and maps
• High bandwidth and graphics intensive
• They also provide special capabilities
• Integrative tool for data and analysis based on
  geography for development sectors and pillars

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ECAs GI Vision for Africa

• Our vision is to ensure that spatial data
  permeates every aspect of society and that they
  are available to people who need them, when they
  need them, and in a form that they can use to
  make decisions with minimal pre-processing
• Also the collected data sets should be put to the
  maximum possible uses by publicising their
  existence and making them easily available to the
  widest possible audience
• - Future Orientation of GI Activities in Africa

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Contacting Us

• ICT, Science Tech Division
• Aida Opoku-Mensah, Officer in charge
• aopoku-mensah_at_uneca.org
• Geoinformation Systems Section
• Dozie Ezigbalike, Chief of section
• ezigbalike.uneca_at_un.org
• SDI Guide
• http//geoinfo.uneca.org/sdiafrica/
• http//www.uneca.org/aisi
• http//geoinfo.uneca.org/sdinici