A conference on the theme “Earth Observation for Evidence-Based Decision Making” is being held from 12 to 16 August in Nairobi, Kenya. The purpose of the event is to stimulate the exchange of ideas on the accelerated application of earth observation and geospatial technologies in development decision making.
Digital Earth Africa is hosting a series of events as part of the International Conference of the Regional Center for Mapping and Resource Development (RCMRD) and the African Earth Observation Group (AfriGEOSS) Symposium.
Digital Earth Africa (DE Africa) is an international development initiative formed to build a large operational platform for accessing and analyzing decades of satellite imagery specific to Africa’s land and seas. DE Africa will translate data from the world’s free Earth observation satellites into ready-to-use insights into the continent’s environmental conditions. Such insights will enable African governments, NGOs, businesses and individuals to make more informed decisions about soil and coast erosion, agriculture, deforestation, desertification, water quality and human settlement changes.
DE Africa is currently in the first year of its three-year plan for project implementation. The results are intended to provide reliable, routine, near real-time evidence of changes in Africa’s natural and anthropogenic environment. This type of evidence is intended to assist in making more informed decisions about agriculture and food security as well as deforestation and strengthens the ongoing monitoring and management of Africa’s mining, forests and water resources.
A Steering Committee for DE Africa was formed in 2018, bringing together various entities and government representatives, such as: Kenya Vice-President’s Office, Scientific and Industrial Research Council (South Africa); Earth Observation Group, Ghana Statistical Office; South African National Space Agency, Geoscience Australia; World Economic Forum, Earth Observation Satellites Committee and Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data. With the support of the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research, the Steering Committee has developed a study to determine the feasibility of a scalable, economically and technically sustainable model for Africa.