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A Development Project: Africa Strategy for Geomatics

Columns Engineering Associates (CEA) Corporation is one of several contractors which participated in the implementation of the Africa Strategy for Geomatics. The development project is intended to help state and regional administrators focus its project development activities in Africa and to respond to the challenges of using geomatics as a tool to address key issues facing African countries. Some key issues include:

  • Sustainable management of water and natural resources;
  • Protecting the environment;
  • Preventing desertification and climate change;
  • Cadastre, land-use planning and security of international boundaries;
  • Management of land, agriculture and forests; and,
  • Natural disaster response.

In light of these issues, technologies of interest to these countries include Geographic Information Systems, Spatial Data Infrastructure as well as capacity building and national geomatics plans.

In preparing this strategy, Project Management consulted a number of stakeholders, including other government departments, foreign businesses, academia, development partners and international organizations. These consultations were combined with extensive analysis of each African country's social, environmental and economic situation. The strategy includes a comprehensive diagnosis of the development challenges facing African countries. It considers how future applications of geomatics could provide reliable support to African decision-makers in addressing sustainable development issues.

The strategy takes into account the principles and priorities articulated by the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, the G8 Africa Action Plan, the UN Millennium Development Goals and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). The strategy focuses on particular African countries, prioritized based on each country's:

  • Geomatics requirements;
  • Current development programs and policies;
  • Support from international financial institutions and organizations;
  • Economic situation; and,
  • Involvement with foreign businesses, colleges and universities.

It also takes into account each selected country's state of institutional development, implementation capacity, governance, and other issues. As a result, the development project has prioritized work for the following countries for geomatics work: Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Ghana, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, Senegal, and Tunisia.