DOWN TO EARTH
Geographic Information for Sustainable Development in Africa
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
www.nap.edu
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was jointly sponsored by the Environmental Systems Research Institute, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Imagery and Mapping Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Science Foundation, U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Department of State, and U.S. Geological Survey. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organizations or agencies that provided support for this project.
International Standard Book Number: 0-309-08478-4
Library of Congress Control Number: 2002110505
Front cover: Left—a GeoCover-Ortho image of Mount Kilimanjaro originally obtained at 30 × 30 m spatial resolution. It has a positional accuracy of better than 50 m (root mean square error). Landsat TM bands 7,4,2 (mid-infrared, near-infrared, and green) are displayed (courtesy of Earth Satellite Corporation). Each color or shade is unique and depends on the vegetation type, health, and growth stage. The bright greens are dense vegetation. The purples and pinks are sparse to no vegetation. The bottom third center of the image along Mount Kilimanjaro’s lower slopes contains areas of clear cuts (in pinks) surrounded by uncut verdant forest (bright greens). The top of the mountain is snow-covered (blue) and the white areas are clouds. Upper Right—artist’s rendition of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission 60-m (200-ft) mast being deployed from the space shuttle Endeavor (courtesy NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory). Radar images are collected from the end of the mast and from the shuttle payload bay. Lower Right—paper maps used in decision support in Namibia (courtesy of Jo Tagg, Namibia Nature Foundation).
Cover designed by Van Nguyen
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COMMITTEE ON THE GEOGRAPHIC FOUNDATION FOR AGENDA 21
JOHN R. JENSEN, Chair,
University of South Carolina, Columbia
KWESI BOTCHWEY,
Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
ELLEN BRENNAN-GALVIN,
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington, D.C.
CHRISTIAN J. JOHANNSEN,
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
CALESTOUS JUMA,
Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
AKINLAWON L. MABOGUNJE,
Development Policy Center, Ibadan, Nigeria
ROBERTA BALSTAD MILLER,
Columbia University, Palisades, New York
KEVIN P. PRICE,
University of Kansas, Lawrence
PRISCILLA A. C. REINING (Retired),
International Office of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C.
DAVID L. SKOLE,
Michigan State University, East Lansing
ANDREW STANCIOFF,
Stone Environmental, Inc., Washington, D.C.
D. R. FRASER TAYLOR,
Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
NRC Staff
ANTHONY R. de SOUZA, Director,
Board on Earth Sciences and Resources
PAUL M. CUTLER, Study Director
LISA M. VANDEMARK, Study Director
KRISTEN L. KRAPF, Program Officer
EILEEN M. McTAGUE, Research Assistant
TERESIA K. WILMORE, Project Assistant
COMMITTEE ON GEOGRAPHY
BILLIE L. TURNER II, Chair,
Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts
BERNARD O. BAUER,
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
RUTH S. DEFRIES,
University of Maryland, College Park
ROGER M. DOWNS,
Pennsylvania State University, University Park
MICHAEL F. GOODCHILD,
University of California, Santa Barbara
SUSAN HANSON,
Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts
SARA L. MCLAFFERTY,
University of Illinois, Urbana
ELLEN S. MOSLEY-THOMPSON,
The Ohio State University, Columbus
ERIC S. SHEPPARD,
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
NRC Staff
KRISTEN L. KRAPF, Program Officer
MONICA R. LIPSCOMB, Research Assistant
VERNA J. BOWEN, Administrative Associate
MAPPING SCIENCE COMMITTEE
DAVID J. COWEN, Chair,
University of South Carolina, Columbia
ANNETTE J. KRYGIEL, Vice-Chair, Independent Consultant,
Integro, Great Falls, Virginia
ERIC A. ANDERSON,
City of Des Moines, Iowa
WILLIAM J. CRAIG,
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
MARK MONMONIER,
Syracuse University, New York
JOEL MORRISON,
Ohio State University, Columbus
SHERYL G. OLIVER,
Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Springfield
HARLAN J. ONSRUD,
University of Maine, Orono
C. STEPHEN SMYTH,
MobileGIS, Ltd., Bellevue, Washington
JAMES V. TARANIK,
University of Nevada, Reno
REX W. TRACY,
BAE Systems, San Diego, California
A. KEITH TURNER,
Colorado School of Mines, Golden
NRC Staff
PAUL M. CUTLER, Program Officer
RADHIKA S. CHARI, Senior Project Assistant
BOARD ON EARTH SCIENCES AND RESOURCES
RAYMOND JEANLOZ, Chair,
University of California, Berkeley
JILL BANFIELD,
University of California, Berkeley
STEVEN R. BOHLEN,
Joint Oceanographic Institutions, Washington, D.C.
VICKI J. COWART,
Colorado Geological Survey, Denver
DAVID L. DILCHER,
University of Florida, Gainesville
ADAM M. DZIEWONSKI,
Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
WILLIAM L. GRAF,
University of South Carolina, Columbia
RHEA GRAHAM,
New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, Albuquerque
GEORGE M. HORNBERGER,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville
DIANNE R. NIELSON,
Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Salt Lake City
MARK SCHAEFER,
NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia
BILLIE L. TURNER II,
Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts
THOMAS J. WILBANKS,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee
NRC Staff
ANTHONY R. de SOUZA, Director
TAMARA L. DICKINSON, Senior Program Officer
DAVID A. FEARY, Senior Program Officer
ANNE M. LINN, Senior Program Officer
PAUL M. CUTLER, Program Officer
KRISTEN L. KRAPF, Program Officer
KERI H. MOORE, Program Officer
LISA M. VANDEMARK, Program Officer
YVONNE P. FORSBERGH, Research Assistant
MONICA R. LIPSCOMB, Research Assistant
EILEEN M. McTAGUE, Research Assistant
JENNIFER T. ESTEP, Administrative Associate
VERNA J. BOWEN, Administrative Associate
RADHIKA S. CHARI, Senior Project Assistant
KAREN L. IMHOF, Senior Project Assistant
SHANNON L. RUDDY, Senior Project Assistant
TERESIA K. WILMORE, Project Assistant
WINFIELD SWANSON, Editorial Consultant
Acknowledgments
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Dr. André Bassolé
Environmental Information Systems in sub-Saharan Africa (EIS-AFRICA)
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Dr. Ruth S. Defries
University of Maryland
College Park
Dr. Paul V. Desanker
University of Virginia
Charlottesville
Dr. Michael F. Goodchild
University of California
Santa Barbara
Dr. James Guseh
North Carolina Central University
Durham
Dr. Barry N. Haack
George Mason University
Fairfax, Virginia
Dr. David Kaplan
Department of Trade and Industry
Cape Town, South Africa
Dr. Pamela A. Matson
Stanford University
California
Dr. John Mugabe
African Centre for Technology Studies
Nairobi, Kenya
Dr. Marilyn Silberfein
Temple University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Dr. Thomas J. Wilbanks, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Dr. Brian J. L. Berry, University of Texas. Appointed by the National Research Council, they were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.
Preface
On July 9, 2001, Undersecretary of State for Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky sent a letter to Dr. Bruce Alberts, president of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, requesting a study as a contribution to the U.S. Department of State’s “Geographic Information for Sustainable Development” Alliance for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in August 2002. Being held a decade after the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, the main goals of the summit are to “reinvigorate the global commitments to and achieve a higher level of international solidarity and partnership in the promotion of sustainable development” (UN, 2001).
The Geographic Information for Sustainable Development Alliance is an international collaboration and alliance whose objective is to apply a new generation of earth observation data and GIS-linked technologies to ongoing sustainable development problems in Africa. The alliance focuses on four case-study regions in sub-Saharan Africa. These are the Upper Niger basin, the Kenya-Tanzania coast, the African Great Lakes Region, and the Limpopo and Zambezi river basins. As a component of the Geographic Information for Sustainable Development Alliance, this study concentrates on sub-Saharan Africa and draws on experiences from activities in these case-study regions. Descriptions of ongoing activities in these areas are provided as examples of the application of geographic information to sustainable development in Africa. Given the embryonic state of some activities in the case-study regions and the available time and resources, the committee chose not to critically analyze these efforts. Instead the committee (Appendix A) drew on literature and testimony from public, private, and non-profit organizations working with geographic information and applications in Africa (Appendix B) and its own experience and judgment to determine broad lessons learned. Committee and staff members also participated in international conferences and meetings of geographic information practitioners in Bamako, Mali; Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Nairobi, Kenya; Niamey, Niger; and Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
In a symposium at the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in 1999 Professor John E. Estes first noted the need for a study of this type. He suggested compiling a resource high-lighting the value of geographic data and tools for addressing issues of sustainable development. Professor Estes stated, “We cannot have sustainable economic development and improved environmental quality without understanding how our global resource base is changing through time.”
In addition to the U.S. Department of State the study received support from the Environmental Systems Research Institute, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Imagery and Mapping Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Science Foundation, U.S. Agency for International Development, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
John R. Jensen, Chair
REFERENCE
UN (United Nations). 2001. SADC Progress Report on the Implementation of Agenda 21 and Sustainable Development: A Report to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development. Available at <http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/web_pages/sadc_prepcom_progress_report.pdf>. Accessed August 1, 2002.