BEST PRACTICES AND LESSONS LEARNT FROM THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AFRICA ENVIRONMENT INFORMATION NETWORK (AEIN)

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Table of Contents PART 1: STATUS OF ENVIRONMENT INFORMATION MANAGEMENT IN THE PILOT COUNTRIES CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO THE AEIN........................................................... 5  The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) ..................................................................................... 5  Using information to support environment management ................................................................................... 5  The Africa Environment Information Network (AEIN) ..................................................................................... 6  Establishment of the Africa Environment Information Network (AEIN)....................................................... 6  Participating sub-regions, countries and institutions ...................................................................................... 7  Tools ............................................................................................................................................................... 9  Documenting best practices .......................................................................................................................... 10  CHAPTER 2: STATE OF EIS IN THE DIFFERENT PILOT COUNTRIES...................................................... 11  Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................... 11  Western Africa.................................................................................................................................................. 12  Burkina Faso................................................................................................................................................. 12  Ghana............................................................................................................................................................ 14  Senegal ......................................................................................................................................................... 16  Southern Africa................................................................................................................................................. 18  Lesotho ......................................................................................................................................................... 18  Zambia .......................................................................................................................................................... 22  Northern Africa................................................................................................................................................. 24  Egypt............................................................................................................................................................. 24  Tunisia .......................................................................................................................................................... 25  Eastern Africa ................................................................................................................................................... 26  Ethiopia......................................................................................................................................................... 26  Uganda.......................................................................................................................................................... 28  Indian Ocean Islands ........................................................................................................................................ 31  Seychelles ..................................................................................................................................................... 31  CHAPTER 3: SYNTHESIS OF THE STATE OF EIS ........................................................................................ 33  Data availability................................................................................................................................................ 33  Application ....................................................................................................................................................... 33  Networking ....................................................................................................................................................... 35  Capacity building.............................................................................................................................................. 36 PART 2: IMPACTS AND LESSONS LEARNED CHAPTER 4: OUTCOMES AND LESSONS LEARNED.................................................................................. 38  Western Africa.................................................................................................................................................. 38  Burkina Faso................................................................................................................................................. 38  Ghana............................................................................................................................................................ 38  Senegal ......................................................................................................................................................... 39  Southern Africa................................................................................................................................................. 39  Lesotho ......................................................................................................................................................... 39  Zambia .......................................................................................................................................................... 40  Eastern Africa ................................................................................................................................................... 42  Ethiopia......................................................................................................................................................... 42  Uganda.......................................................................................................................................................... 43  Northern Africa................................................................................................................................................. 43  Egypt............................................................................................................................................................. 43  Tunisia .......................................................................................................................................................... 44  Indian Ocean Islands ........................................................................................................................................ 45  Seychelles ..................................................................................................................................................... 45  CHAPTER 5: SYNTHESIS OF OUTCOMES AND LESSONS LEARNED ..................................................... 46  Synthesis of outcomes ...................................................................................................................................... 46  Improved networking.................................................................................................................................... 46  Better data management and environmental reporting ................................................................................. 46  Improved awareness across the region ......................................................................................................... 47 

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Training ........................................................................................................................................................ 47  Synthesis of lessons learned ............................................................................................................................. 47  Programme versus project approach............................................................................................................. 47  Integration into existing programmes ........................................................................................................... 48  Need for political support ............................................................................................................................. 48  Ensuring local ownership ............................................................................................................................. 48  Building capacity .......................................................................................................................................... 49  Areas for improvement ..................................................................................................................................... 50  Financial considerations ............................................................................................................................... 50  Barriers to accessing information ................................................................................................................. 50  Implementing time frame ............................................................................................................................. 50  CHAPTER 6: ANALYSING THE BIG PICTURE.............................................................................................. 52  SWOT analysis ................................................................................................................................................. 52  Recommendations ............................................................................................................................................ 53  Capacity building.......................................................................................................................................... 53  Networking and awareness building............................................................................................................. 54  EIS structures and policies............................................................................................................................ 55  Use of EIS and data products........................................................................................................................ 55  Additional considerations for the future ........................................................................................................... 55  Conclusion........................................................................................................................................................ 58 

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PART 1: STATUS OF ENVIRONMENT INFORMATION MANAGEMENT IN THE PILOT COUNTRIES

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO THE AEIN The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was created in 1972 at the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. One of its core mandates is to keep the world’s environment under review and highlight issues of import to policy makers. To do this, UNEP has over the years collaborated with a number of partners to strengthen national capacities for environment management. This has included support for management of environment information as a central part of the process of managing natural resources. Until the early 2000’s, most of the activities in the area of environment information management focused on building skills to make information available for decision making and policy formulation. However these were largely confined to narrowly defined projects or programmes. One of the more successful broad-based programmes in capacity-building launched in the early 1990s, was the World Bank's Programme on Environmental Information Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa (EIS-SSA). The main objective of the programme was to assist Sub-Saharan countries to build sufficient capacity to assess their needs in environmental management and sustainable development. Other examples of capacity building efforts at national level include the National Conservation Strategies (NCS) and National Environmental Action Plans (NEAPs), which were adopted by governments in the region. Of particular importance in this regard, were the: UNEP Environment and Natural Resources Information Network (ENRIN); Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS); and the Environmental Information Systems on the Internet (SISEI). At the sub-regional level, significant capacity-building efforts have also been implemented under the: Regional Environment Information Management Programme (REIMP) in Central Africa; Southern African Development Community (SADC) Environmental Training and Education Sub-programme (SETES); and the Southern African Network for Training and Research on the Environment (SANTREN) in Southern Africa. The list of initiatives highlighted above is not comprehensive but is a good indicator of the multiplicity of efforts that have so far tried to enhance skills in the management of environmental information and increase awareness of their relevance to sustainable development. While technical and technological issues may have been addressed to a certain extent, organizational issues are still wanting. Indeed the multiplicity of sources of information points to the need for standards to facilitate cooperation amongst those involved in the disparate projects in this field. This is even more important where there is limited access to technology, funds and expertise.

Using information to support environment management An overview of environment management in most African countries points to uncontrolled use and exploitation of the natural resources in the face of ever increasing needs by the growing population. Scientists and policy makers, in planning for the use of natural resources, have for long tried to provide some measure of their sustainability. Without accurate means to assess the natural resources, excessive exploitation is likely to occur thus

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leading to environmental degradation. In fact this is already the case in some parts of the continent. Against this background, decision makers realised the need for environmental information as an input to detailed scientific assessment, planning and management for natural resources. Information from diverse sources and in a variety of formats is used to assess the conditions and trends in the environment, to determine and adjust policy directions and to invest resources for the management of the environment. Environment information is thus not only a theoretical necessity but a practical vehicle for realising sustainable development (Kiss and Ewing undated). Box 1 defines environment information. Bringing together and analysing this Box 1: What is environment information? diverse information requires an effective environment information system (EIS). According to WLIP (1991) in Paradzayi and Rüther An EIS can be described as an integrated (undated) environmental information includes information system that employs a information relating to topography, soil, geology, minerals, vegetation, land cover, wildlife, land use, land variety of information technologies and use controls and restrictions, jurisdictional boundaries, analogue strategies to capture integrate historic and prehistoric sites and economic projections. and provide environment information These data have to be spatially referenced through land resources to users. The components of an survey records, geodetic control networks, aerial EIS – the information resources, the photographs and remote sensing imagery in a variety of spectral bands and resolutions. Environmental hardware and software, the natural practitioners can use EIS as a management technology resources and the people interact with the to determine, organize and manage and the optimal environment by responding to various utilization of environmental resources. information demands and providing support through various outputs. Source: Paradzayi and Rüther (undated) However the sheer diversity of data sources and types, versions of software and hardware, and the needs of both the users and information producers’ require an arrangement to facilitate cooperation amongst those involved. An environment information network (EIN) has been proposed as one such arrangement. An EIN provides a forum for communication on a range of technical, institutional and policy issues relating to the availability dissemination and use of environment information. It also builds awareness on information management needs and issues, capacity development, promotion of standards and elaboration of data release policies by data producing institutions. This was the premise behind the establishment of the Africa Environment Information Network (AEIN).

The Africa Environment Information Network (AEIN) Establishment of the Africa Environment Information Network (AEIN) The Africa Environment Information Network (AEIN) was established in 2003 in response to a request to UNEP by the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN). In its Kampala Declaration (2002) AMCEN endorsed a proposal to establish a comprehensive environmental information network to promote access and harmonisation of data in the Africa region to act as a basis for tracking environmental changes using quantitative indicators focussing on national needs. The AEIN implementation process was launched in February 2003 in Pretoria, South Africa, during a stakeholders’ workshop. It was based on the premise that by establishing a sound data foundation, the AEIN would then be able to

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fully support the integrated environmental assessment and reporting process, leading to the production of AEO-2. The implementation strategy involves a three pronged approach: enhancing networking at all levels, building human resources capacity building; and improving the use and access to ICT for information management. An international steering committee was established to ensure inter-linkages and harmonised implementation with similar initiatives in the region. A framework document and an implementation strategy with guidelines were adopted and have since been published. These were subsequently circulated to stakeholders for use in implementing AEIN at the national level. The guidelines were to ensure consistency of the methodology across the region. They are adaptable and allow diversity from country to country, taking into account specific national priorities. The first phase of the AEIN run from 2003-2004 and main objectives were to: • build capacity for integrated environmental assessments and reporting at the national level. As an outcome of this capacity building activity, AEIN would provide data and information support to the AEO process and the production of national state of environment reports and outlooks; • enhance capacities at the national level for using modern information management tools to better characterize environmental resources and understand complex processes, as well as linkages among environment and development issues; • provide inputs in the implementation of NEPAD and contribute to the key policy and sustainable development drivers such as the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and • be a multi-stakeholder and multi-tier network whose ultimate goal would only be achieved through effective partnerships, networking and collaboration Participating sub-regions, countries and institutions Africa is clustered into six sub-regions within the framework of the Global Environment Outlook process. This clustering was maintained for the AEIN operations. Figure 1 show the countries involved in the AEIN phase 1 while table 1 shows the countries, collaborating centres and participating institutions by sub-region. Twelve countries were selected for participation in phase 1 of the AEIN programme. However Cameroon and Gabon are not included in this best practices document. This is because they were only able to initiate AEIN Phase 1 activities in 2006 due to delays caused by several institutional changes. Figure 1: Countries involved in the AEIN phase 1 by sub-region

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Tunisia

Egypt

Senegal BurkinaFaso Ethiopia

Ghana Cameroon Uganda

Gabon

Zambia

Western Africa Eastern Africa Southern Africa Indian ocean Islands Central Africa Northern Africa

Lesotho

N

Table 1: Collaborating centres and participating institutions by sub-region Collaborating Centre Country and National focal institution National Environment • National Environment Management Authority Management Authority (NEMA) (NEMA), Uganda Uganda http://www.nemaug.org • Environment Protection Agency (EPA), Ethiopia Indian Ocean Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) • Policy, Planning and Services Division of the Islands http://www.coi-info.org Ministry of Environment, Seychelles • Ministry of Environment, Mauritius Central Africa Agence Internationale pour le • Centre for information and Documentation on Développement de l’Information Environment of the Ministry of Environment and Environnementale (ADIE) Forestry, Cameroon. http://www.adie-prgie.net North Africa Centre for Environment and • Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) Development in the Arab Region • Ministre de l’Agriculture de l’Environnement et and Europe (CEDARE) des Ressources Hydrauliques, Tunisie http://www.cedare.org.eg Southern Southern Africa Research and • Environment Council in Zambia (ECZ) Africa Documentation Centre (SARDC) • Environment Secretariat of Lesotho http://www.sardc.net West Africa Network for Environment and • Environment Protection Agency (EPA), Ghana Sustainable Development in • Conseil National pour l’Environnement et le Africa (NESDA) Développement Durable (CONEDD), Burkina http://www.nesda.kabissa.org Faso • Centre for Ecology and Natural Resources (CSE), Senegal Sub-region East Africa

Conceptual model of the network

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The framework of the AE|IN is based on participatory and collaboration partnerships with ongoing regional, sub-regional and national initiatives. At the country level, national nodes would lead the process of implementation promoting ownership by countries thus addressing national priority needs. National focal point institutions were identified and supported by UNEP/DEWA to lead the implementation. The coordination and management of AEIN would involve various key stakeholders including a high-level international steering committee. Sub regional collaborating centres would facilitate and co-ordinate AEIN activities at sub-regional level. UNEP/DEWA would act as an overall facilitator and donor co-ordinator. This framework is shown in figure 2. Figure 2: AEIN network structure and linkages to on-going initiatives FRAMEWORK FOR INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT & REPORTING

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES & PROCESSES

AMCEN

(NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES, NEPAD, MDGs, ETC.)

International Steering Committee UNEP-ROA/DEWA

West Africa

Central Africa

East Africa

Collaborating Centre

National Steering Committee

Southern Africa

Indian Ocean Islands

North Africa

Collaborating Centre AEIN National Node

Framework Coordination Unit Stakeholders’ Forum

Technical Services Provider

Technical Committee

Data Centre

Data Centre

Data Centre

Data Centre

Data Centre

Data Centre

National Working Groups

Transactional Communication Occasional Direct Communication

NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

Coordination for IEA & Reporting Technical Services

Source: UNEP 2002

Tools The main focus of the first phase was to develop common tools to support the implementation of the AEIN and also integrated environmental assessment and reporting process in the region and to test these tools in the Collaborating Centres and the pilot countries before region-wide replication commences. The following were the main tools developed: • A preliminary EIS assessment was undertaken in three countries, Lesotho, Ghana and Ethiopia and the findings were used to develop the AEIN implementation guidelines. The results of this preliminary assessment indicated that it was necessary to have close integration between the needs of the environmental agency and the activities of the network. This model was adopted in Lesotho and seemed to work well in keeping the network active and responsive to the priorities of its members. • Guidelines for the production of National Environment Outlook reports were developed and were tested in the pilot countries during the process of producing national environment outlook reports.

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•

•

Guidelines for Policy analysis and a policy analysis workbook were developed in close collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). These aimed at ensuring that policy analysis was integrated into the Africa Environment Outlook so as to enhance its effectiveness as a policy and advocacy tool. A regional training was held for the Collaborating Centres and representatives of the AEIN national focal point institutions to help sharpen policy analysis in environmental assessment and reporting. A data tool was been developed for capturing disaggregated data under the various environmental themes. The tool includes application parameters aimed at capturing data at national and sub-regional levels.

Documenting best practices This document brings together the experiences of the countries that participated in the first phase of the AEIN programme. By documenting the challenges and lessons learned, it is hoped that other countries can learn from these experiences to move forward some of the similar initiatives they have embarked upon.

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CHAPTER 2: STATE OF EIS IN THE DIFFERENT PILOT COUNTRIES Introduction This chapter will give an overall summary of the responses submitted by the sub-regional and national collaborating centres. The main unique responses have been included in order keep the report brief and avoid duplication. In the sections that follow, each country summary will be analysed under four elements: data availability, application, networking and capacity building. These are explained briefly in the sections that follow. Data availability The main area of interest is to assess if the core datasets required for a comprehensive national reporting on the environment exist. In addition the assessment looks at how the issue of data gaps is addressed by participating countries and stakeholders. A key question asked is whether there are any concerted efforts in this direction, evidenced by budgetary provision, projects, or assignment of staff with the specific responsibility of managing data. Application The main interest here is to assess to what extent is the EIS and data products are used in environmental management processes and reporting. Networking One of the cornerstones of this phase entailed that networking as a concept would be promoted by participating countries. The assessment looks at whether there is evidence of a functional network, whether a national spatial data infrastructure (SDI) development process exists and the level of information awareness within the EIS community as a result of the implementation of AEIN. Box 2 describes SDI in more detail. Capacity building With regard to capacity building, the assessment looked at skills and structures in place and their adequacy to use the data to produce assessment reports that are relevant to the national planning process. Box 2: What is Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI)? A spatial data infrastructure (SDI) is a framework of spatial data, metadata, users and tools that are interactively connected in order to use spatial data in an efficient and flexible way. Another definition is the technology, policies, standards, human resources and related activities necessary to acquire, process, distribute, use, maintain and preserve spatial data. Some of the main principles are that data and metadata should not be managed centrally, but by the data originator or owner. Tools and services connect via computer networks to the various sources. A GIS is often the platform for deploying an individual node within an SDI. Good coordination between all actors is necessary as is the definition of standards. Due to its nature (size, cost and number of interactors), an SDI is usually driven by government. Examples include the United Nations (http://www.ungiwg.org/documents.htm), the United States (http://www.fgdc.gov/nsdi/nsdi.html) and Kenyan SDI initiative http://www.knsdi.go.ke/ Source: Wikipaedia 2009

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Western Africa Burkina Faso Overall state of EIS The assessment report shows that Burkina Faso does have and is using environment data to address a number of environment and natural resources issues and there exist some sector specific EIS. Institutions belonging to these networks do exchange data. The assessment shows that most organisations have a strategy on the use and exchange of environment information. Existing exchange protocols are an indication that role players are aware of the importance of sharing environmental information and the complementary nature of organisations. There is also a growing awareness among institutions of the type of data information that is available but a number of organisations do not have the ICT hardware and software needed to ensure continuous and constant network participation. Data availability In Burkina Faso a number of government organisations, NGOs and private sector agents are involved in the generation of environmental data. Key datasets include land use, ecosystems, animal species and genes, and physical features, among others. A total of 15 institutions are actively involved in the generation of these datasets. They include the following: 1. National Meteorological Office (DM); 2. National Council for the Environment and Sustainable Development (CONEDD); 3. Department of Forestry (DGEF); 4. Department for the Development of Pastoral Space (DAPF); 5. Department of Environmental Assessments (DEE); 6. Department of Forecasting and Agricultural Statistics (DGPSA); 7. National Land Bureau (BUNASOLS); 8. Department of Geography of the University of Ouagadougou; 9. Department of Mines, Geology and Quarries (DMGC); 10. Foundation of the Friends of Nature (NATURAMA); 11. Participative and Decentralised Rural Development Project in the Bazega and Kadiogo Provinces (PDRDP/BK); 12. Department of Land and Sea Transport; 13. INERA GIS and Remote Sensing Cell (CTIG); 14. Burkina Faso Geographical Institute (IGB); 15. Department of Land and Sea Transport (DGTTM). Application Burkina Faso has and is using environment data to address a number of environment and natural resources issues. Networking Burkina Faso has sector specific EIS’s. These include the following: • National Earth Science Information System (SNIST), which pools geological, mining, geophysical air and soil and geochemical databases as well as satellite images in a GISmanaged environment. Creation of this information system also involves computerisation of the Documentation Centre of the Bureau des Mines et de la Géologie du Burkina (BUMIGEB), Internet access and the establishing of links between the Espace de Navigation et d’Information en Géologie, Mines et Environnement (ENIGME) components to exchange information;

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•

•

The National Environmental Information System (NEIS) meets the environment management needs of the National Council for the Environment and Sustainable Development (CONEDD). The information system develops environmental data by grouping together and standardising databases in a GIS environment to facilitate information analysis and plan production; and Department of Mines and Geology’s (DGMG) Environmental Cell (CE) capacity and the Sectorial Mining and Environmental Database (BDSME) includes legal texts and environmental monitoring procedure files of the mining sector.

Institutions belonging to these networks exchange data. The assessment shows that most organisations have a strategy on the use and exchange of environment information. Existing exchange protocols are an indication that role players are aware of the importance of information sharing and the complementary nature of organisations. There is also a growing awareness among institutions of the type of data information that is available but a number of organisations do not have the ICT hardware and software needed to ensure continuous and constant network participation. Capacity building The levels and numbers of employees vary greatly from one organisation to another. Table 2 below summarises this. Table 2: Management expertise in environment information sector Activities Gathering/verification of data Data input / quality control Data analysis Technical drafting Graphic design / publication Communication Information system management Geographic information systems Remote sensing Database development Systems management Internet/website access Other types of technical assistance Total

PhD and Master’s degree 150 137 78 159 27 24 19 15 12 15 11 26 1 674

Honours degree 172 132 59 107 22 29 17 16 13 16 2 26 1 612

B.A. degree 18 11 8 13 6 5 3 13 2 6 4 10 4 103

Course 652 656 22 177 12 10 13 48 19 22 3 76 2 1712

Total 992 936 167 456 67 68 52 92 46 59 20 138 8 3101

Most partners have undergone advanced training in the gathering, verification, input and quality control of data. Most of the training (48%) has been at postgraduate level. There has been very little training regarding database management, geographic information systems and remote sensing. The assessment report shows some organisations have good number of well qualified personnel with skills in the management of environment information. For example, among governmental organisations, the Department of Forestry is the best-off when it comes to the gathering, input, control and technical drafting of data. Many of its staff have attended courses at post-graduate level. However, regarding systems management, GIS, databases and remote sensing, only a few employees of the Department of Forestry have received advanced

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training. Additional skills are needed in areas of networking, environmental information management, remote sensing, systems management, GIS, data quality control, databases, systems management, the Internet, communication and others. Although most organisations have computers, the quality varies. Some organisations like the Department of Forecasting and Agricultural Statistics (DGPSA), Department of Land and Sea Transport (DGTTM), INERA GIS and Remote Sensing Cell (CTIG) and the National Council for the Environment and Sustainable (SP/CONEDD) have state-of-the-art computers and software (Windows XP), while others work with outdated computers and operating systems. Ghana Overall state of EIS There is a well developed country level EIS in place with a number of participating institutions. The basic theme that has brought individually mandated data producing and datausing institutions together is to develop the environment information system. Ghana has significantly developed its EIS processes through the development of regional and district information systems. Data availability The major data producers in Ghana are the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Survey Department of Ghana, Water Research Institute, Centre for Remote Sensing and GIS, Forest Commission, Soil Research Institute, Ghana Statistical Service and the Ghana Meteorological Department. As regards data production, the Environment Protection Agency has been instrumental in the development of land use/land cover maps for Ghana. The satellite imagery used for these maps date from the 1990 period when many datasets were generated. Some of the available data include the following: • Ghana Country at a glance data (synoptic data at very small scale) • Land cover atlas for Ghana –1998 • Land cover/land use data –2003 • Land suitability maps for 53 different crops at low, intermediate and high levels • Land suitability atlas and bulletins • Ghana Soils Information System • Digital Elevation Model of Ghana 1:50000 • DEM and Slope maps • Satellite Images of Ghana 1990 and 2000 • AVHRR data re-sampled/geo-rectified data • Regional Packages of EIS data. The data packaged along political divisions include data on forest and wildlife reserves, meteorology, land cover/land use, soils among others in ArcINFO coverage’s and shape files • A GIS Database of coastal sensitivity for the entire coast of Ghana. • Coastal Sensitivity Map for the Coast of Ghana at a scale of 1:20,000 The Survey Department is responsible for the production of maps for the country and supervising all mapping surveys in Ghana. The assessment report shows that Ghana has an impressive inventory of maps and other spatial datasets.

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The Water Resources Institute collects the following datasets: • Data on groundwater resources of Ghana covering availability, quality and quantity. • Data on sediment transport in Ghanaian rivers for planning purposed • Hydro meteorological and hydrological data for planning and research. • Information and production of bio-insecticides for the control of malaria and bilharzia vectors. • Information on prototype iron removal plant for borehole supplies. • Information on rainwater harvesting and infiltration gallery. • Information on SAWAH eco-technology for rice production. Sawah is a man-made, improved rice-growing environment with demarcated, bunded, leveled, and puddled fields, for water control. Sawah is soil based eco-technology. • Information on water management in valley bottoms for rice production • Tilapia seed/fingerling production being used by farmers to provide material to stock their own fish production units. • Information on fish husbandry technology/fish-poultry-integration raising of poultry birds (in appropriate numbers) in coops raised above fishponds. In the proves the poultry provides manure material for fish pond water • Information on fish ranching and cage-fish culture design for example the ‘pen’ has been advanced to install in appropriate water environments to culture fish in, using the floor of water body in touch with fish. • Information on small scale design of treatment plants for industrial effluent. The Centre for Remote Sensing and GIS is responsible for undertaking and assisting research into land and water resources appraisal and monitoring, including rural and urban land use patterns and trends. The Forest Commission produces data on the utilization of forest and wildlife resources, its conservation and management while the Soils Research Institute collects data on Ghana’s soil resources and its utilization. Application Ghana has significantly developed EIS processes through the Development of Regional and District Information Systems called ‘Regional and District Packaging’. Datasets developed during the Ghana Environmental Resource Management Project (GERMP) namely, topographic information; land cover/land use; soil and land suitability; land ownership; meteorological information, were repackaged and made available in a format suitable for use in regional and district planning and decision-making. The data were organised according to regions and packaged as independent datasets. Each regional dataset covers topography, land use, indicative land ownership, soils, land suitability and census data (1984) for the major settlements. Network members like the Centre for Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems [CERSGIS] was contracted to package the datasets in collaboration with the respective regional authorities and the EPA and CERSGIS were to identify the subject matter for the prototype application specific to each region. All the sets of data, together with the prototype applications, were then pressed on CD-ROM for distribution to the Regional Administration, the EPA, the Forestry and Wildlife divisions of the FC, and the NDPC and key ministries. Networking

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A well developed country level EIS in place. It started during the implementation of the GERMP and carried on during the implementation of the Natural Resource Management Project. Developing the EIS brought together the individually mandated data producing and data-using institutions. The catalyst in the development of EIS in Ghana was the development of the Forestry Development Master Plan spanning a period of fourteen years (1996-2020). One important part is the Environmental Information System Component whose main objective is the area of promoting, sharing and use of environmental information generated under GERMP. EIS network activities are coordinated by the Environment Protection Agency. Through its mandate the EPA has championed the cause of working together for the ministries, departments, agencies and the private sector not only in issues of the environment but in development of EIS in Ghana. The EPA has a well-endowed network of partners and stakeholders and is the secretariat for the Ghana National Framework for Geo-Information Management (NAFGIM) - a spatial data infrastructure (SDI) initiative programme and is currently the focal point for the AEIN. It is part of the network of institutions that implemented the environmental management component of the Natural Resource Management Project (NRMP). Capacity Though Ghana has a highly developed EIS it needs capacity building in the purchase and use of new technologies to enhance the efficiency of the network. Senegal Overall state of EIS The overall state of EIS in the country is generally rudimentary. Key environmental datasets are generated by government institutions and supplemented by NGOs’ and the private sector. So generally speaking Senegal has environmental information for certain key sectors. Although there are a number of institutions which have mandates in environmental management these could be better coordinated. For instance, the National Centre of Scientific and Technical Information is one institution that collects, processes and documents data to support economic and social development decision making processes. However the common datasets collected between institutions are not properly defined so data collected on the same issues are sometimes not comparable. There is no spatial data infrastructure to provide a common framework for data definition. Data availability Key environmental datasets are generated by Government institutions and supplemented by NGOs and the private sector. There is a sectoral approach to data handling and management. Consequently each institution generates data and information using their own institutional standards. Whilst there has been some progress in developing policies and strategies for environmental management, there are no policies that specifically address the management and access to environment information. The conditions of access vary from free to payment of a fee. Incomplete geographic or temporal coverage is the most common limitation of data held by institutions involved in environment, natural resources conservation, and sustainable development planning. Most institutions identified the lack of adequate equipment, training or resources for data collection as major constraints.

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The assessment shows that most institutions likely to participate in the network lacked resources to contribute effectively to the process. Some of these are core data producers and the quality of their products has significant impact on secondary products. In some cases the data are outdated, incomplete, non-existent or lack sufficient accuracy, even for a minimum core dataset. Natural resources datasets (water resources, wildlife, soils, vegetation, agroecological zones), used in the compilation of key outputs like the national environmental outlook reports are in many instances based on outdated datasets. Lack of time series datasets which are consistent make scenario modelling for the outlook very difficult and inaccurate. Typically data collection is spontaneous, responding to specific one-off need, mainly for a project. Application The National Centre for Scientific and Technical Documentation (CNDST) was set up in 1974. It was created to drive the development of a national policy of technical and scientific information and to set up a national network for the exchange of scientific and technical information. Specific activities were to process and document scientific and technical material and disseminate it to its stakeholders. It is particularly strong on desertificationrelated data. There are a number of information systems on specific themes. The desertification network (Système d'Information sur la Désertification) brings together national and international collaboration efforts to address the effects of desertification. In collaboration with the UNCCD, it is accessing resources to formulate plans, strategies and support specific projects to address desertification. The Environment Information Network on the Internet (Système d'information et de suivi sur l'environnement du Sénégal) also exists. Another information system - the information system of the Regional Center for Resources for Traditional Energies (Centre Régional de Ressources pour les Energies Traditionnelles or CRETAS) brings together stakeholders in the energy sector. Data are mainly used for planning, monitoring, management and decision making. Most information products are mostly in form of maps, reports (annual, statistical), newsletters and bulletins. Networking Compared to many African countries Senegal has a relatively organised and structured institutional arrangement for environmental data collection. There is a National Centre of Scientific and Technical Documentation (CNDST) launched in 1974. It is under the Ministry of Modernisation and Technology and its mandate is to collect, document and process data to support economic and social development decision making processes. CNDST is also the focal point for INFOTERRA. The CNDST coordinates a National Network of Scientific and Technical Information with a large membership of institutions. Another network CRETAS focuses on energy issues. Capacity building All institutions have access to some computer facilities. In all cases they use personal microcomputers with varying capacities and different types of software. Most institutions handling spatial data use either AutoCAD or ARC/INFO. Data can easily be exchanged between institutions using the most common data exchange formats, such ARC/INFO coverage and

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export formats, DXF(AutoCAD), or DBF (dbase) or even the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ANCII) format. Overall there is a good pool of information technology expertise but these are mainly in the private sector. The institutions that constitute the national EIN need trained manpower in the fields of database management, web design and development of web-based portals and the use of GIS in environmental management. In addition the assessment has identified specific hardware and software requirements to support networking efforts.

Southern Africa Lesotho Overall state of EIS There is a varied clientele that use environmental information, but most is used internally within institutions. There are no functional EIS networks and the assessment shows that although most institutions gather, analyse and interpret data, there is limited exchange of information between institutions. Data availability The assessment report shows that Lesotho uses key datasets relating to land use, biodiversity, socio-economic and physical features. However, it is unable to generate all the required datasets. Figure 3 below show the proportion of data managed, used and needed by various institutions. Generally there is lack of documentation on the available information, which is mostly outdated. It is also difficult to exchange due to different data structures and no data release policies. Figure 3: Proportion of data managed, used and needed by institution

Biodiversity information management

Landuse information management

Need 16%

Need 33%

Management 45% Management 0.80%

Use 33%

Use 75%

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Physical features information management

Need 31%

Socio-economic information management Management 25%

Management 19%

Need 42%

Use 50%

Use 50%

Application The data produced by the institutions is used by a variety of clientele. Most of the information is used internally within institutions. However the institutional categories of data users include national and local government, NGOs and other stakeholders. Table 3 highlights the major users of information by type of institution of origin. Information is used to support a variety of activities. The main categories are decision support, management, monitoring compliance, planning and zoning, policy formulation, enforcement and many others. This is shown in table 4. Over 50 per cent of the institutions use information for planning and decision making. The use of information to support varied functions such as monitoring compliance, enforcement of regulations, policy formulation, and operations shows increasing appreciation of institutions to utilise environmental information as a resource in planning and decision making. Previously, such information support functions were never regarded as serious. But this is changing. Partly because of the increasing maturity of the Committee on Environmental Data Management (CEDAMA), and also due to new policy requirements: for instance, the need for Environmental Impact Assessment prior to undertaking any environmentally related activity. Table 3: Percentage of organization serving various consumers Information usage Number of % of the organisations by type of client institutions Internal usage 6 46 International 3 23 District 2 15 National 6 46 Private sector 6 46 Non-governmental 4 31 Other 0 0 Table 4: Proportion of organisations using information for various functions Main use of Number of % of the data/information institutions organisations Decision support 7 54 Management 5 38 Monitoring compliance 4 31 Planning/zoning 7 54 Policy formulation 2 15

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Main use of data/information Enforcement of regulation Operations Licensing Research Other

Number of institutions 2 2 0 4 0

% of the organisations 15 15 0 31 0

An example of how the data from the EIS has been applied is the maps that were produced by one network member: Maloti Drakensber Transfrontier project which is coordinated by the National Environment Secretariat. The aim of the activity was to identify areas in the country that had the most biodiversity values in order to focus conservation activities in those areas. Figure 4 is one of the maps that were produced. It has been disseminated through workshops in all concerned districts and it is expected that this information will be central in the district development plans that are being developed. Figure 4: Landscape transformation in Khomo-Phatsoa Community Council

Networking Most of the organisations surveyed were government institutions operating at the national level. Almost all of the organisations are members of the Committee on Environmental Data Management (CEDAMA). The committee was established in 1999 and has a cross-sectoral membership. It is chaired by the Bureau of Statistics. Its functions include production of data access and exchange guidelines, as well as development of sustainability indicators. The

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expectation of most members is for improvement in accessing data and information. The organisations that were involved in the assessment include; 1) National Environment Secretariat (NES) 2) Department of Rural Roads (DRR) 3) Lesotho Meteorological Services (LMS) 4) Department of Mines and Geology (DMG) 5) Bureau of Statistics (BOS) 6) Lands, Surveys and Physical Planning (LSPP) 7) Department of Rural Water Supply (DRWS) 8) Land Use Planning Department (LUPD) 9) Department of Water Affairs (DWA) 10) National University of Lesotho (NUL) 11) Agric Crops (A. crops) 12) Agric Research (Agric Res) 13) Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) 14) Lesotho Highlands Development Authority (LHDA) 15) Range resources management (RRM) 16) Lesotho Electricity Corporation Although most institutions gather, analyze and interpret data and information, few seem to exchange it and need always outstrips demand. Information networking mechanisms exist in Lesotho and some of the setbacks include the following: • Some institutions that manage environmental information do not take part in forums such as CEDAMA, • There is a dearth of publications on environmental data or information. • There are restrictions regarding the usage of communication facilities such as telephone, e-mails and the Internet • Some institutions do not have networking facilities such as Local Area Networks and sharing of data/information within institution itself is inadequate, • There is no Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) in place, which goes a long way in promoting networking of data. Capacity building There is a large gap between the number of personnel trained at post-graduate level and those who have attended short courses. This may compromise on the quality of the available data and processed information. There is thus urgent need for a training needs assessment. Some institutions have inadequate computing facilities and peripherals like the plotters, printers, scanners and other GIS facilities. Most of the organizations lack Internet and e-mail facilities. Resources should be allocated to improve on the state of information technology, including both computing and peripherals and also Internet usage. Table 5 summarises the various trainings in information management. Table 5: Assessment of training levels to various information management activities

Data collection/monitoring Data entry/quality assurance

Water and Sewerage Authority PG G Dip S.C T X x

21

WFP PG

G

Dip

S.C x x

T

Lesotho Electricity Corporation PG G Dip S.C T

Data analysis Technical writing Graphic design/publishing Communications Management information systems Geographic information systems Remote sensing Database development Systems management Internet access/web-site Other technical assistance

x x

x x x x x

x

x x x

x x x

Zambia Overall state of EIS Zambia has had a long history of using EIS to support environmental management activities. With support from cooperating partners, Zambia implemented an Environmental Information Network and Monitoring System project which facilitated the development of data and information products to support environmental management activities. While the mandate for overall environmental management lies within the Environmental Council of Zambia (ECZ), the bulk of the data/information required to meaningfully produce information products such as the SOE lies with external institutions. Data availability Major datasets in Zambia are generated by government institutions, NGOs and other private institutions. Among the institutions assessed, it is clear that a lot of environmental data is collected to meet various demands. These are needed to address major challenges in the management of the environment and natural resources. Application Zambia has, for a long time, been using EIS to support environmental management activities. The Environmental Information Network and Monitoring System project facilitated the development of data and information products to support environmental management activities. Under this initiative, catalogues of existing data were published and maintained by data centres, standards for key datasets were established, and construction of core datasets started and the development of national capacity to provide information services were undertaken. The programme also supported the revitalisation of the Zambia Geographical Information System (ZaGIS), an NGO to provide services to an EIS forum that was established under the programme. Further the SOE reports produced have

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been used provide information to the Fifth National Development Plan (FNDP), the National Policy on the Environment and the Integrated Development Plan for Solwezi district. The Lusaka Environment Outlook has contributed to the Master plan for Lusaka city, Tourism Action Plan being developed for Livingstone city. The provisions for environment information in the FNDP are highlighted in Box 3. Networking The Environment Information Network and Monitoring System forum was established in 2000 and comprised government departments, NGOs and the private sector. The forum promoted dialogue between stakeholders, assisted in developing standards, held technical meetings to support stakeholders’ needs. A website provides a forum through which they interact with each other: http://www.necz.org.zm/aein/index.html. The forum, with collaboration from development partners produced the National Spatial Development Infrastructure (NSDI) framework for Zambia making specific recommendations on policies, procedures and other related items. The institutions participating in the forum are: 1) Zambezi River Authority Box 3: Zambia’s Fifth National Development Plan 2) University of Zambia, Agriculture 3) GKW Consult The Fifth National Development Plan (FNDP)— Zambia’s PRSP—sets out a policy framework for 4) University of Zambia, Mines boosting growth and enhancing employment and 5) Environmental Council of Zambia income opportunities for the poor. 6) Electoral Commission of Zambia The five-year plan (2006–10) has a strategic focus in 7) Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company various areas including environment. The programmes, 8) Geological department of Zambia objectives and strategies for the environment sector 9) PESAD specifically mention the management of environment 10) Ministry of Local Government & Housing information. The objective is to establish and support an effective institutional framework able to effectively 11) Agricultural Support Programme manage environmental information, through a strategy 12) Wildlife Conservation Society of improved coordination and partnerships for environmental information management 13) Mines & Minerals Department 14) Zambia Survey Department Source: ROZ 2006. While the mandate for overall environmental management lies within the ECZ, the bulk of the data/information required to meaningfully produce information products such as the SOE lies with external institutions. So, in order to fulfil its mandate of reporting on behalf of Zambia to the AEO and AEIN initiatives, the ECZ negotiates an official but voluntary Memoranda of Understanding either through the forum or other policy/legal directives. Capacity building There is still need for capacity building in terms of skills needed to manage environmental data. In the recent past, a number of Zambian professionals have acquired training and education in environmental management, with special focus on the management of geoinformation. A number of institutions have indicated various manpower needs. Current skills in GIS and Remote Sensing range from certificate to PhD level with the majority at diploma and bachelors degree level. Much of the training is still undertaken at foreign universities and colleges. Many institutions would prefer a Bachelors degree qualification for the employees handling environmental information particularly in GIS/remote sensing. Equipment is still a challenge and needs to be addressed. Most of the available equipment is inadequate for the tasks expected.

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Northern Africa Egypt Overall state of EIS Egypt has used the EIS and data products in different areas and it has a lot of functional networks and these networks are now coordinated by the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) through an operational and functional Environmental Information System EIS. The structure of the Egyptian EIS is shown in Figure 5. Figure 5: Egyptian Environmental Information System Structure

Source: http://www.eeaa.gov.eg/english/main/about.asp

Data availability Egypt produces data and information, which is used to prepare various plans and other strategies. Some of this is available on the website (www.eeaa.gov.eg). Despite the existence of core datasets, Egypt still lacks reliable and timely information indicating how the various sectors of society impact on the environment and whether development is becoming more sustainable or not. Application Data produced is used in GIS applications for solid waste management, water stream areas or remote sensing to monitor green areas in some districts of the country. Table 6 highlights some of these applications according to the technology used. The EIS and various data products have also been used in the following areas: • Executive Management level of EEAA • The Central Department Of Planning • International cooperation and Disasters management • Environmental Inspections Unit • The Nature Conservation Sector

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• • •

The Environmental Management Sector The Environmental Quality Sector The EEAA Regional Branch Offices Table 6: Applications of data generated by the environmental information system

GIS and Remote sensing applications Landfill Site Selection

Remote sensing applications Monitoring Green Areas in some Districts in Cairo

Regional Branches of EEAA Solid Waste Management Air Monitoring Stations Environmental Projects Waste Water Treatment Stations Management of Hazardous Waste New Industrial Cities National Action Plan Natural Protectorates Hot Spots Areas

Monitoring the new urban communities in Cairo Monitoring the urban encroachment on the vegetated land Monitoring oil pollution in Gulf of Suez Monitoring air pollution in Helwan and Shopra areas Studying Marine Ecosystems along the Red Sea

Networking Egypt has a number of functional networks: These various networks are now coordinated by Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) through an operational and functional Environmental Information System. This coordinating role has assisted the EEAA to efficiently collect, process, and disseminate of reliable environmental information. The list of networks includes: • Executive Environmental Information System ( ExecEIS) • Multilateral Environmental Agreements Information System (MEAIS) • Urban and rural Development Zones Information System (URDZIS) • Environmental Projects Information System EPIS • Hazardous Substances Information & Management System (HSIMS) • Solid Waste Management System (SWMS) • Environmental Complaints System (ECS) Capacity building Egypt’s main capacity needs are in the area of enhancing the process of information collection and management. The country also needs financial resources to support training, awareness building and to improve data collection. It specifically requires expertise to set up a web-based portal to act as a central depository of all environmental information.

Tunisia Overall state of EIS in Tunisia The overall state of EIS in Tunisia is weak. The country does not have an organized EIS. When data is required to support an activity, for instance the production of state of environment reports, consultants gather the required data from state departments and agencies. This is then harmonised and homogenised into the various reports. There is no evidence that a formal EIS network exists in Tunisia except informal collaboration between various institutions. Through AEIN implementation Tunisia has developed a plan to establish a formal EIS network to support integrated environmental assessment and reporting. Availability of data

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Various agencies and institutions produce environmental data and information to address various concerns. Although environment information is available, it can be adequately described as fragmented and is published irregularly. Often the information is produced only when projects are implemented. The information is thus produced unsystematically and irregularly. Moreover, much of the data focuses on activities and projects not the broader environmental aspects. Application Despite the absence of an organized EIS, data is available in the different state institutions. When required to support a particular activity, consultants gather the required information from specific state departments and agencies. This is then synthesized into various outputs for the required purpose. For instance, this happens during the production of the state of the environment report. Networking There is no evidence that a formal network exist in Tunisia except informal collaboration between various institutions. Through AEIN implementation Tunisia has developed a plan to establish a formal EIS network to support integrated environmental assessment and reporting. Capacity building Tunisia needs support in enhancing the environmental management skills in the areas of networking, data gathering, processing and reporting.

Eastern Africa Ethiopia Overall state of EIS The assessment report states that partner institutions process, analyse and interpret their respective environmental data to produce information in the form of reports, maps, charts, diagrams, aerial photograph, research publications, and newsletters. These products are mainly in hardcopy, which in most cases are disseminated upon request by users. However, some of the institutions disseminate their printed information to listed users by carrier. Ethiopia has two formal networks. These are the Ethiopian Natural Resources and Environmental Meta-Database (ENRAEMD) and the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). These networks cover the entire nation and they address multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral environmental networking initiatives. Data availability Environmental datasets collected by the partner institutes include: socio-economic, hydrological, germplasm passport, topographic maps, thematic maps, and aerial photographs, satellite imagery, meteorological, agricultural, natural resource, demographic, geo-science data, among others. Most institutions have their own procedural quality control mechanisms. Data quality control operations are carried out, in some, at different stages such as collection, compilation and analysis. Access to data or information within partner institutions can be quite challenging. Most institutions do not have well organized environmental data management system, library, automated databases or websites. In general, there is no environmental information data access policy.

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Application Partner institutions process, analyze and interpret their respective environmental data to produce information in the form of reports, maps, charts, diagrams, aerial photograph, research publications, and newsletters. These products are mainly in hardcopy, which in most cases are disseminated upon request by users. However, some of the institutions disseminate their printed information to listed users by carrier. Only three out of the thirteen participating institutions utilize websites for their product dissemination. Data and product dissemination in soft copy has begun in some of the institutions. The Environment Protection Agency uses information from various institutions to prepare the state of environment reports and other products. So far two SOE reports have been published in 2003 and 2008. Networking AEIN implementation in Ethiopia commenced with the establishment of a horizontal network structure. The Federal Environmental Protection Authority, which is the focal node for the AEIN in the country identified key institutions that produce information central to environment management. These institutions became part of the Ethiopian Environment Information Network (Ethio-EIN) Initiative. They include: 1) Central Statistical Authority 2) Christian Relief Development and Aid 3) Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission 4) Ethiopian Mapping Authority 5) Geological Surveys of Ethiopia 6) Institute of Biodiversity Conservation 7) Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development 8) Ministry of Health 9) Ministry of Water Resources 10) National Meteorological Services Agency 11) Population and Housing Census Commission Office Ethiopia has two other formal environment-based networks. These are the Ethiopian Natural Resources and Environmental Meta-Database (ENRAEMD) and the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). These networks cover the entire nation and they address multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral environmental networking initiatives. ENRAMED was established under the coordination of Ministry of Water Resources. However, the various organizational activities required for creating the meta-datasets in the respective institutions has stagnated for various reasons and including capacity problems. The Ethiopian Natural Resources and Environmental Meta-Database (ENRAEMD) and the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) are among the major nationwide and multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral environmental networking initiatives.

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The national spatial data infrastructure (NSDI) supports the sharing of geo-spatial data in the national context by means of a set of national standards such as: a spatial data reference system, topographic database, elevation model and thematic mapping (soil, agro-ecology, vegetation, roads). The main objectives of the Ethiopian NSDI are to: • create a forum for the spatial data stakeholders in Ethiopia • achieve horizontal (across disciplines) and vertical (across multi-scale decision making) integration of geo-information • improve system interoperability among GIS systems • stimulate and support the development and use of geo-information and associated technology, as a result reduction of cost for data collection • identify, collect, organize, store, present and distribute geo-information. The beneficiaries of the NSDI are all those which participate on collection, processing dissemination and use of geo-spatial data. The major ones being government institutions, NGOs, private sectors municipalities, Community Based Organisations (CBOs) and many others. In addition, professionals involved in environmental information management such as environmentalists, planners, geologists, cartographers, geographers, engineers, surveyors, IT professionals are among the major beneficiaries. There are opportunities for additional networking under the Ministry of Capacity Building which has ongoing ICT initiatives such as the SchoolNET and WoredaNET. These are aimed at connecting 500 schools for educational purpose and 594 Woredas for data collection and information exchange respectively. Capacity building Partner institutions have professionals in their speciality area to carry out data collection, analysis, interpretation and technical write-up. The mandates of some institutions such as Environmental Mapping Authority, National Meteorological Services Agency, Population and Housing Census Commission Office and Central Statistical Authority require the collection of huge datasets. In such cases the staff manage the entire information lifecycle of data collection, quality control, analysis and dissemination. All partner institutions face serious problems of skilled manpower in the fields of ICT, GIS, and information documentation, database administration, network administration, website development, remote sensing, library and documentation. With regard to ICT, the assessment shows that the ICT facilities of the partner institutions are found to be highly diversified with most institutions lacking modern and updated hardware and software and trained manpower to use the facilities. Uganda Data availability There are a number of institutions both Government, NGO and private institutions involved in generation of core environmental data and information to support environmental management in Uganda. These include: 1. Directorate of Water Development 2. Geological Survey and Mines 3. Geography Department, Makerere University, 4. Kampala City Council (KCC) 5. Ministry of Health 28

6. Kawanda Agricultural Research Institute 7. Uganda Bureau Of Statistics 8. UN Convention to Combat Desertification/National Action Plan Coordination Unit 9. Water Resource Management 10. Department of Meteorology 11. Makerere University Institute of Environmental and Natural Resources 12. Wetlands Inspection Division 13. Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry & Fisheries, Early Warning Unit 14. Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry & Fisheries 15. Physical Planning Department Information is available in different formats and scales. Different organisations support similar environmental information gathering activities and hence there exists some duplication of efforts. Another challenge has been the age of the data, its completeness, quality and accuracy. With the establishment of the National Environment Information Network, attempts were made to develop various degrees of competencies in environmental information management and facilities. Table 7 shows the type of data and responsibilities assigned to the key institutions. Table 7: Data responsibilities of the key EIN institutions in Uganda Institution Forest Department (NFA) Kawanda Agriculture Research Institute Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Industry & Fisheries Meteorology Department

Dataset Land cover Soil Agriculture Rainfall (climate) Rehabilitation of weather stations Makerere University Department of Environment and Biodiversity Natural Resources Department of Physical Planning Land use Department of Surveys and Mapping Topographic data Rehabilitation & expansion of the Geodetic network NEMA Coordination of EIS network

Application The EIN was established 10 years ago under the Environmental Management and Capacity Building Project. The main objective of the EIN is to enhance the capability of key data producers to exchange data and information in compatible formats and at minimal time and cost. Data shared through the network provides information in the production of the State of Environment reports. It operates as a network of members with open lines of communication between all. It has a coordination function through a secretariat and membership open to all. It targets large data users and producers in Government, NGOs and the private sector. The EIN has used the EIS process to produce specific products for each of the institutions including soil maps and state of environment reports at national and district level Networking Uganda’s EIN activities started 10 year ago and have gradually evolved into fully fledged decision support tools for a number of activities. The EIN framework comprises of horizontal 29

and vertical frameworks. The horizontal network was established to enable sectors (lead agencies) at national level have a forum for collaboration in data and information sharing as well as sharing resources while the vertical network does the same at district and local levels. It also provides dynamic linkages and flow of information between the local level institutions and the national level. The networking structure is shown in figure 6. Figure 6: Design of the Uganda Environment Information Network

Source: UNEP/NEMA 2004 Capacity building Uganda requires capacity building in a number of areas. These are listed below, and the equipment needs analysed by institution in table 8. • Various ICT facilities and technical capacity to manage them • Increased user awareness about the GIS tools and capabilities • Building databases and database management systems • Providing training in the creative use of information • Capacity in web-based information exchange • Capacity in integrated environmental assessment and reporting Table 8: Summary of institutional capacity needs Institution National Environment Management Authority (National focal point) Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries Ministry of Health

Makerere University, Geography Dept Kampala City Council

Environmental Skills Required 1. Design/Maintenance of Webserver 2. Integrated DBMS 3. Web mapping 1. RS/GIS 2. DBMS 1. GIS 2.DBMS 3. Desktop Publishing 1. Spatial Data Analysis 2. Information Management 1. GIS 2. RS 3. Graphics Design

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Facility Required • Web Map Server • Web Server • 4 Workstations • 2 PCs • Website • GPS/GIS • Groupware Communication • GIS • Oracle • Digitising Table • Plotter • Backup Server Nil

Department of Physical Planning

Makerere University

Geological Survey and Mines Fisheries Resources Research Institute UNCCD/NAP Coordination Unit Water Resources Management Meteorological Dept

Directorate of Water Development

1. GIS & RS 2. Graphics Design/Desktop Publishing 3. DBMS 1. DBMS 2. GIS/Predictive Modelling 1. Environmental Reporting 1. Website Development 2. GIS 3. DBMS 1. GIS/RS 2. DBMS 1. Real Time Modelling 2. RS 3. Environmental Reporting 1. RS 2. GIS 3. DBMS 1. Environmental Reporting 2. DBMS

• PC • Digitising table • Plotter • PC • Colour printer • Web server Nil Nil

Nil Nil • PC • RS software • Satellite Nil

Indian Ocean Islands Seychelles Overall state of EIS The Seychelles National Clearing-House Mechanism (CHM) has been set up as part of the process of implementing the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD). The main objective of the CHM is to promote and facilitate scientific and technical cooperation. The assessment report revealed that that many organisations in Seychelles participate in some network activities. The most prominent network is the known as the Environment Management Plan of Seychelles Steering Committee (EMPS). The committee brings together many partners implementing various projects and programmes. Data availability Various Government, NGOs and private institutions are involved in generating environmental data. These include Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources National Archive, Ministry of Local Government, Sports and Culture, Tourism Department, Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Management and Information Systems Division, Ministry of Information Technology and Communication, Social Development Division, Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, Centre for Industrial Scientific and Technical Information, among others. Many organisations in Seychelles hold valuable information and knowledge on environment. The biggest challenge facing the country is how to piece together the data holdings through linkages, sharing and exchanges to provide a more integrated approach to environment management. Application The assessment shows most institutions produce their own environmental datasets in support of their mandates. This data is currently being used through the Seychelles National ClearingHouse Mechanism. The clearing house was set up as part of the process of implementing the 31

Convention on Biodiversity. The main objective of the clearing house is to promote and facilitate scientific and technical cooperation. The site is under construction and it is expected that it bring together national and international cooperation in the management of biodiversity data and information. Networking Many organisations in Seychelles participate in some network activities. The most prominent network is the Environment Management Plan of Seychelles Steering Committee (EMPS). The committee brings together many partners implementing various projects and programmes. Other partnerships that have been established are mostly between organisations with similar objectives in terms of management and conservation of the environment and sustainable development. The Plant Conservation Action Group (an NGO responsible for advancing plant conservation in the Seychelles) has established partnership with the Botanical Gardens, National Parks and Forestry Section and the Geo-botanic Institute Zurich all of which are responsible for plant conservation in one way or another. Other partnerships have been established especially for exchange and sharing of information, exchange of expertise, provision of advice, technical and technological support amongst other potential cooperation. These partnerships exist at both national and international levels. However the assessment report does not explicitly mention these partnerships. Capacity building The assessment states that most organizations have considerable amount of human skills existing with respect to the following areas: data collection and monitoring, data entry and quality-assurance; data analysis and technical writing. A substantial amount of skills exist in communication, graphic design/publishing, database development and internet access/website. However, 50-63 per cent of the organisations do not have any human skills with respect to the following areas: management information systems, geographic information systems, remote sensing and systems management. The three most important areas where skills are most needed are: technical writing, database development and management and data analysis. Other areas where skills are needed are management information systems and Geographic Information Systems. The assessment report states that most organisations need application software for database management, internet access facilities and communication and groupware facilities. They also need computer hardware with large storage space to enhance data management.

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CHAPTER 3: SYNTHESIS OF THE STATE OF EIS Data availability Most information products from the pilot countries are in the form of maps, reports (annual, statistical) newsletters and bulletins. This information is used mainly for planning, monitoring, management and decision making purposes. In most cases, the underlying data used is outdated, incomplete, non-existent, or lacks sufficient accuracy, even for a minimum core dataset. In Ghana, for instance the satellite imagery used by the EPA for the production of land cover/land use maps is from 1990 and 2003. The situation is no better with other datasets. Indeed many countries reported that the natural resources datasets (water resources, wildlife, soils, vegetation, agro-ecological zones) used in the production of the latest State of Environment reports or Environment Outlook reports were based on data and maps published between 5 and 10 years ago. Although the AEIN assisted the countries to undertake comprehensive inventories and make plans to address the identified data gaps, funding is still a problem. The immediate explanation for this situation is that most African governments operate under stringent financial resources and usually fund projects that have immediate political or socio-economic gains. Funding for projects with long-term gains such as EIS projects, is therefore, not readily available from central governments. In some cases, the huge capital expenditure and the new technologies required is expensive for most of these countries to afford. As a result, most of the work in this sector has been supported by donors in the form of natural resources management projects. However the lack of coordination between the different projects resulted in the adoption of different data standards or protocols complicating information sharing, duplication of data and resources and promoted conflict between different sectors. For instance the wide spectrum of data sources results in data integration problems caused by different map projections and coordinate systems, different naming conventions, and different accuracy standards. This has posed, and still poses, severe data harmonization difficulties as the dissimilar sources have to be integrated into a single format. Another challenge has been the proliferation of incompatible hardware and software configurations in the different agencies. To further compound the situation, the assessment shows that the electronic communication facilities in most of the pilot countries do not meet the demands of the distributed nature of EIS data and facilities.

Application The establishment of environmental information systems, particularly in African countries, has followed the traditional approach to information technology adoption as predicted by Nolan. According to the Nolan’s model, there are four stages in the EIS evolution. These are: innovation, contagion, control, and integration (Yeates et al., 1994 in Paradzayi and Rüther undated). These stages have their own distinct characteristics and are described in box 4. From the assessment reports there are very few countries (Egypt, Ghana and Uganda) that are at the innovation stage. Computers are still mainly being used for activities such as word processing, database management and statistical analysis. But the usefulness of EIS’s has been acknowledged by management in these countries as demonstrated by the ease with which the AEIN activities have been integrated into existing institutional structures.

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Box 4: Nolan’s Model of EIS adoption The establishment of environmental information systems, particularly in African countries, has followed the traditional approach to information technology adoption as predicted by Nolan. His model outlines the evolution of information systems in four stages: innovation, contagion, control, and integration. Innovation: During the initiation stage, computers are used to satisfy basic needs of very few enthusiastic individuals within an organisation. As the use of computing technology gathers momentum, computerisation problems will inevitably arise. These problems are further compounded by the fact that typically minimal planning is done before the establishment of computing facilities. At this stage management is least concerned about these problems since they are not the major focus of the organisation’s activities. Contagion: Successful implementation of information technology (IT) by few individuals often triggers a rapid increase in the use of computing within the organisation. Management will begin to realise the great potential of this technology while most users’ expectations increase. This results in parallel developments of computing applications leading to duplication of computing facilities and the adoption of different specifications for hardware and software. Control: At this stage, most organisations establish computing departments to coordinate the various computing initiatives in their bid to plan, control and formalise the growth of the technology. The position of IT management in the organization is well acknowledged, often leading to controlled standardisation of hardware and software configurations. The information system planning is given high priorities and management controls the costs. Data processing becomes centralised, creating a single information system for the whole organisation. Integration: Information systems have the tendency to grow in leaps and bounds, reaching unmanageable proportions within short periods of time. As the system grows, control structures are re-evaluated, sometimes leading to the decentralisation of application development. Use and application development is rationalised and coordinated. Planning is widely accepted and any centralisation or decentralisation of computing resources and applications is controlled through business strategies. Source: Paradzayi and Rüther undated.

The situation in Seychelles, Burkina Faso and Lesotho show EIS development to be in the contagion stage. For instance, a number of government institutions are developing applications independently without consulting other departments. This makes the process of information sharing and data exchange complicated. In Senegal, Zambia, Ghana and Egypt EIS activities are predominantly at the control stage. It has been realised that environment management and by extension environment information is a cross-sectoral issue. As a result, data management departments have been established to better coordinate the various computing initiatives. These units actively supported the production of State of Environment Reports and other environmental datasets. A good example is the Ghana - Country at A Glance database. It was created by generalising and synthesising data from several custodians. It is a synoptic, inter-operable, and user-friendly geographical database. In addition to providing overview information, it serves as an introduction to the detailed datasets that are available at the partner institutions (Paradzayi and Rüther undated). There are aspects of integration stage in the EIS’s of Ghana, Zambia and Uganda. There is also evidence of decentralisation through the growth of the vertical (sub-national) EIS in Uganda. However an analysis of Uganda’s district EIS’s show them to still be at the innovation stage. Increasingly in Uganda, institutions at national level are taking responsibility for various applications with positive policy responses from government. For instance, research has shown that land degradation costs Uganda’s economy up to US $625 million per annum in lost crop yields at 2002 prices (NEMA 2004). EIS models at both national and sub-national levels visually highlighted the problem prompting government to embrace the sustainable land management initiative of the World Bank and to include environment and land degradation as a development pillar in the proposed National

34

Development Plan. Figure 7 shows soil loss at county level on the Mbale sheet which covers about 12 districts. Figure 7: Soil loss by county on the Mbale sheet (approximately 12 districts)

Map production: Kawanda Agricultural Research Institute, Uganda

Networking As described in the previous section, EIS networks exist to differing extents in the pilot countries. Formal EIS networks have been developed which have provided a platform for data and information exchange. The networks vary in complexity with some being confined to specific sectors while others have more extensive linkages between sector efforts. Senegal, Egypt and to some extent Seychelles have well established EIS networks. Indeed in Egypt the different networks are all coordinated by the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency through an operational and functional Environmental Information System EIS. Although these networks were mainly supported by donors, and therefore had specific aims and objectives, they led to the development of expertise in the fields of GIS, remote sensing and database management technology developed in most African countries during this era. The development of EIS networks has been fraught with a number of problems. These range from institutional barriers to technical constraints as well as limited resources – both human and financial. All AEIN pilot countries stated that funding for projects with long-term gains such as EIS projects was not readily available. This left most EIS’s being supported by donor agencies. Considering that each supporting institution came with its own standards and

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procedures, this led to a proliferation of data types, standards and protocols. The result was that when data was required for analysis at national level, integration from the different data sources became difficult if not impossible. Institutional barriers have negatively affected the development of EIS networks in all pilot. There is generally a tendency to develop sectoral networks as institutions try to resist central coordination which could undermine their autonomy. Zambia, Lesotho, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Senegal have started building their Sustainable Development Infrastructure (SDI). Zambia has launched its ICT policy where SDI is a key element in driving the creation of a fully functional EIS network. Zambia’s ICT policy is described briefly in box 5. Box 5: Zambia’s ICT policy Zambia’s ICT policy was launched in March 2007. It is based on 13 pillars, and has three main goals: • To promote the economy; • To improve the provision of public sector services to rural communities and other disadvantaged groups; and • To boost the performance of the public sector. One of the policy goals is to promote the integration of ICT in the development of the tourism industry and facilitate the conservation of Zambia’s natural resources and heritage as well as to protect the environment. One of the strategies identified to achieve this is to establish the National Spatial Data Infrastructure as a mechanism for cross-sectoral collaboration in sharing and exchange of natural resources information; MCT (2006)

Capacity building The need for capacity building shows a similar trend across the pilot countries. In Seychelles most organizations have some skills in data collection/monitoring, data entry/qualityassurance, data analysis and technical writing. A substantial amount of skills exist in communication, graphic design/publishing, database development and internet access/website. However, about 50-63 per cent of the organizations do not have any human skills with respect to the following areas: management information systems; geographic information systems; remote sensing and systems management. This situation is similar in Burkina Faso, Uganda, Ghana, Egypt and Zambia. All countries indicated that capacity building is most required in the areas of technical writing, database development and management, data analysis, use of GIS and remote sensing in environmental management, use of web-based portals and communication/groupware facilities. In Burkina Faso, advanced training courses on the gathering, verification, input and quality control of data have been given for most partners. Despite the training experience with environment information management is still low. In Uganda there is an urgent need to provide facilities to institutions and build technical capacity for their management. For instance there is need for capacity building in developing and maintaining databases and meta-databases, among stakeholder institutions; and developing a fully functional national EIS network at all levels.

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PART 2: IMPACTS AND LESSONS LEARNED

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CHAPTER 4: OUTCOMES AND LESSONS LEARNED Western Africa Burkina Faso Major outcomes In Burkina Faso the process of gathering, managing, dissemination and updating of environment information has been greatly enhanced by implementing the AEIN project. Streamlining the process of managing information has led to improved access both in terms of quantity and quality. There has been more efficient participation of the network members in the activities of the EIS. Different environmental data and information has been identified and harmonised into a database and disseminated to stakeholders. Material required for environmental reporting is now available and is already being put to use. Various studies and assessments have been undertaken benefiting from this process. The training in integrated environmental assessment and policy analysis has also improved the quality of reporting. Information dissemination channels are also becoming more sophisticated. For instance information is now disseminated through reports, research proposals and internet portals. Lessons learned • Creating links between producers and users of information, including the decisionmakers is very important. The absence of such linkages creates an information vacuum with the users unaware of the data available and producers churning out information that is never used. • Institutional barriers between producers, suppliers and distributers need to be addressed as these can limit the free circulation of information. Ghana Major outcomes The implementation of the AEIN resulted in the identification of relevant stakeholder institutions. In total about 15 ministries, departments, agencies and NGOs are now involved in EIS activities. A formal structure for the AEIN was adopted and a work-plan developed. In addition thematic workgroups have been formed and specific tasks allocated. The national focal point participated in the regional capacity building programme as a precursor to initiating local training fir stakeholders. For instance there has been training in developing skills to environmental policy analysis, strategic environmental assessment, GIS and satellite data processing. These skills have been used in the production of the SOE. Indeed Ghana’s first SOE report was launched in November 2005. Other products include a re-designed and better populated website (http://www.epa.gov.gh/). Lessons learned • Environment Information Networking can ensure the maximising of capacity throughout the network. For example skills and methodologies for analysing data, generating policy-oriented and targeted environmental information, and for integrating such information into sustainable development decision making improved in the EPA and other collaborating institutions. In addition the comparative strengths of one partner did

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•

•

not have to be duplicated in other institutions. This ensured more effective and efficient use of resources. It is vital to use already existing functional networks and their structures to facilitate or augment new initiatives. The selection of environmental stakeholders for the AEIN network was facilitated by the existing structures of the Ghana National Framework for Geo-Information Management (NAFGIM) network. In fact the NAFGIM structures were adopted for the implementation of the Ghana AEIN programme. In that way duplication is avoided. A network should always ensure that it has products. These focus the network members on a common goal and when published provide a good tool for decision making or other. This has been the case with both the SOE and Environmental Outlook Reports.

Senegal Major outcomes The implementation of AEIN in Senegal has brought about a new approach to the management of environment information. A substantial number of stakeholders were identified and are now participating in the network. The process increased interaction between various stakeholders and networks existing in the country. It has provided an opportunity to develop an inventory of data, new methodology for data management and clearing house mechanisms. Common standards of data exchange process have been identified and are now used in the production of the reports such as the SOE. The process also facilitated several partnerships in data and information exchange between stakeholders. For example with existing networks on water, forests and climate change. These will be the basis for the development of a portal to support environmental information exchange in Senegal. Lessons learned • Adequate financing is required in order for the network to sustain itself. The process has energized the country in looking for additional funding for the network. • Dedication and commitment are required to maintain and organize all the stakeholders. • Language issues need to be addressed across the AEIN. During the country assessment, the quality of data captured was affected by the type of questionnaire that was used. The translation from English to French appeared to have missed out some elements. This issue is vital and has to be addressed by UNEP/DEWA to ensure buy-in from Francophone countries.

Southern Africa Lesotho Major outcomes An in-depth EIS assessment was undertaken and an implementation plan based on the findings was developed. Following this assessment, a database of data producers was developed and circulated to stakeholders. However one shortcoming that was identified was the need for increased capacity in recording and updating their metadata. A number of products were developed from this process. A website on environmental information has been developed. It has a link from the departmental website http://www.environment.gov.ls/Documents.htm. In addition, Maseru City produced an

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Environment Outlook report. Experiences and data from that process will feed into the process to produce the National Environment Outlook report. The AEIN process in Lesotho created awareness on the importance of metadata. During the filling in of the questionnaire to assess the state of environment information management at the beginning of the project, many stakeholders realised that they could not adequately describe the kind of data they held. This brought the issue of metadata to the discussion table. In light of that training on meta-data is planned for the members of the Committee of Environmental Data. It will be held in the latter part of 2009. The AEIN process also allowed for inclusion of more stakeholders in activities such as strengthening of national networks. Lessons learned • Institutional commitment is critical for any network to function. Each institution requires at least one champion who will lead and drive the process. • Creating meta-data eases the process of data sharing and enhances visibility of data holdings to potential users. In addition it allows institutions to rationalise the data they have, especially archived data. • Financial planning is essential. Poor finances can mean that there aren’t any available funds to complete key activities. Valuable time is lost trying to secure funds and the project is delayed. • The feedback process needs to be made more efficient. During the assessment, it took between 3-4 weeks to receive comments from network members. This can potentially delay the project. Zambia Major outcomes The mandate for overall environmental management in Zambia lies with the ECZ and the Ministry is the key policy maker on environment. It became clear through implementing the AEIN project that information is a key ingredient in informing and implementing policy. To this end, the proposed National Environmental Policy has a chapter on information management and this will be used to entrench the concept of environmental information management in all sectors. Another outcome that was highlighted was the need to build internal capacity in national collaborating centres such as the ECZ to manage environmental information as well as provide external capacity and collaborative mechanisms for external data generators and users. It has been recommended that the ECZ through UNEP/AEIN should support and establish long-term research and training programmes on environmental information management with the University of Zambia. Such training programmes could be in the fields of GIS, Remote Sensing and Information Technology.

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With the experience of environmental reporting since the implementation of the AEIN, especially with regard to the intensity of the process and level of analysis required, the decision has been taken to review the timeframe for publishing the SOE reports. As such SOEs will now be published every 5 years. Previous state of the environment reports were published in 1990, 1994 and 2001. Lessons learned • Monitoring and evaluation is a vital part of project implementation. Indeed the performance of the environmental information networking forum should be evaluated focusing on the weaknesses and a guide on ‘lessons learned’ developed. This guide could then be used to improve the future development or expansion of the networking forum. The network organization should as much as possible link into established structures such as the national, provincial and district planning and reporting systems. • Core data centres must be involved in the project design with a view to achieving ‘political buy-in’ before the start of any such projects. Incentives should be built into the initiative to attract major data providers to fully participate in the network through such means as financing data collection and demands for ICT skills and infrastructure. Implementation should also support both traditional and new institutions dealing with environmental information. For instance there are opportunities for improved networking and mainstreaming environment with new partners like the Ministry of Finance and National Planning. Indeed this ministry brings expertise in scenario planning which could be very useful in environmental reporting. Further lessons from implementing projects such as the Environmental Information Network and Monitoring System (EINMS) project must be incorporated in the design of projects under the AEIN support. • Technical Assistance will be required to support ECZ’s project management role and technical capacity as the host institution for the national AEIN node. This will be required at various stages of project implementation. Additionally, although there is institutional and technical capacity in most institutions, there are weaknesses in financing data collection and the demands for IT skills to support networking and information packaging. • In order to offset the costs associated with data collection and processing, incentives should be built in the project design to attract major data providers to voluntarily provide the AEIN with the required information. It is also recommended that the design of AEIN must start with identifying and developing the process and impact indicators based on key products and services that will be provided to UNEP and other stakeholders. This will form the basis for ‘attracting’ other stakeholders to provide information on the key indicators. • Environmental reporting has improved due to the involvement of the key data producers. During the production of the SOE, technical working groups were established from key institutions and experts. It enabled a multi-sectoral approach to the process. Adopting the integrated environmental assessment approach to the analysis ensured that the SOE is more focused and relevant to a wider range of decision-makers. However, Zambia will need to develop additional data products to maintain this user base. For instance it might be necessary to develop and implement a national environmental information portal that is web-based and database driven so that information is accessed through in a central repository. • It is necessary to identify and develop key products and services that will constitute the backbone for the national information forum. These products and services should first and foremost provide input to national obligations and ultimately into the AEIN and AEO

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•

processes. They will also provide the basis for defining the process and impact indicators against which the networked data centres will be assessed. When your network is ‘process’ rather than ‘product’ focussed it can easily be used to substantially support policy processes. For instance the various city and district reporting processes provided information input to the Fifth National Development Plan, the National Policy for Environment. The improved networking that followed a more integrated approach also led to improved reporting and balanced information input to the Integrated Development Plan for Solwezi district, the Master Plan for Lusaka City and the TAP for Livingstone City.

Eastern Africa Ethiopia Major outcomes Participating in the AEIN enabled the country to assess environmental information and networking capacity. It created awareness on the available data and information on the environment and enabled the country to develop a concrete strategy for managing environment information. As such it provided a solid framework that can be used to guide environmental reporting. In developing the strategy, the Ethio-EIN structure was clearly defined and networking modalities worked out. It decreased any level of suspicion and conflicts around ‘mandates’ which had arisen due to the cross-sectoral nature of EPAs work. Network integrity was established by respect being accorded to the mandates of partner institution and the strengths of networks like the Ethiopian Natural Resources and Environmental Meta-Database (ENRAEMD) and the NSDI initiative. Now most members of the Ethio-EIN are also partners to the ENRAMED and NSDI networks and there is a cooperative environment between them. The Environment Outlook reports have increased the visibility of the Ethio-EIN. It has impacted decision-making within the EPA and in parliament especially the Standing Committee for Natural Resources, through its science-based reporting and policy analysis. The EPA has recently undergone restructuring and with new focus on results-based environment management, the integrated environmental assessment and reporting process has gained in prominence. This feeds directly into the environment proclamation on providing a clean and healthy environment for Ethiopians. Some of the issues identified in the reports have also received wide media coverage. Lessons learnt • Start small. The AEIN process taught stakeholders in Ethiopia that it is always important to start a network that is of a manageable size of committed partners. However, there is need to secure commitments from management for the activities to succeed. Starting small enables the network to iron out teething problems early allowing for easier scaling up once guidelines have been developed. • The self assessment assisted the country develop confidence and a sense of ownership in the concept of environmental networking. Because of this there was a drive to set up an efficient Environmental Information Network. It improved technical understanding in environment information management including on reporting on the status of the environment • For any network to succeed financial sustainability has to be considered in advance.

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• •

Using formally established mechanisms makes it easier to introduce the networking initiative. This was especially the case in the regional states where using the established environmental protection mechanisms made it easy. Partners institutions need to work hard on delivering quality products to the network, especially where the expectations of decision makers and other stakeholders is very high.

Uganda Major outcomes Uganda has been implement EIN activities for over 10 years now. Participating in the AEIN especially the self assessment enabled the country reassess its environment information networking needs and identify critical inputs required to address priorities at national and district levels. The five-year plan that was subsequently developed will assist stakeholders address specific as well as the wider-network environmental concerns. Lessons learned • During the AEIN implementation, Uganda learned that it is very important that the environment information networking activities be integrated into Government programmes and budgets. This will ensure its sustainability. In addition all stakeholders must be involved and the AEIN process demonstrated this fact. • AEIN must have relevant outputs and there is need to always market outputs and link them to national policy and topical issues. For instance following the recent SOE report (NEMA 2008) highlighted the fact that Uganda is losing national forests at a rate of 2 per cent per annum. This rate is higher at sub-national level reaching 49 per cent in districts like Kibaale as shown in figure 8. Given the linkages between deforestation, climate change, soil erosion and people’s livelihoods this is a contemporary issue that is relevant to the entire country at both political and policy levels. Figure 8: Land cover showing forests in Kibaale district in 1990 and 2005

Source: NFA 2006 in NEMA 2008

Northern Africa Egypt Outcomes

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A reliable agency-wide technical infrastructure has been developed. The Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) is now efficiently using its hardware and software technology for environment information and has a stable and secure network with enhanced system security. This has adequately supported effective and reliable collection of environmental information within and outside the EEAA. Specific and targeted IT applications have been designed, developed and implemented to manage and use the data collected. Further the process has enabled Egypt standardize methodologies for the identification and development of required IT applications. For more effective exchange and access to environment information within and outside the EEAA, an environmental information management and dissemination committee has been set up and a comprehensive environmental information meta-database has been established. A standardized planning system has also been implemented. Planning system guidelines and supporting tools have been established and relevant documentation produced. During the AEIN project time frame the EEAA managed to produce quite a number of documents that benefited from the reporting guidelines and training that were provided. The following documents have been produced: • Guidelines for Environmental Indicators. • Revised Guidelines for Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Health and Safety. • Guidelines for Environmental Norms and Standards. • Guidelines for Handling Hazardous Materials. • Environmental Guidelines for the Management, Implementation and Operation of Projects. • Publication of Environmental Maps. • Environmental Stakeholder Analysis Report. • National Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan. Lessons learned • A strategic plan developed at the beginning of the project would be useful to provide critical guidance throughout the implementation period. It is also important to create realistic work plans and to manage expectations. Reporting is most effective when done on an outcome-output basis with accurate reporting of results and scheduling. It is also important to ensure that all counterpart staff is available at the management and technical levels. • It is necessary to factor in rapid changes in technology by creating flexibility in work plans – for instance short duration activities. • Using a participatory approach at all levels in the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) seemed to work well especially with the EEAA clients. It is important to build and maintain trust relationships in consideration of cultural norms. There is need for continuous communication with between AEIN/UNEP/DEWA to keep the project on track. Tunisia Major outcomes Focussing on the AEIN enabled the network members and the Tunisian Observatory of the Environment and Development to define their relationships - between and within each other, agree on the roles and responsibilities for the network including its structure, terms of

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reference and formal operating procedures. In dealing with those issues, the network was also able to design a plan to identify and utilise information suppliers and managers at the participating organisations. Lessons learnt Tunisia, through this process, learnt that networking can enhance environmental management by producing user defined outputs that are relevant to address environmental concerns

Indian Ocean Islands Seychelles Major outcomes Establishing the network facilitated the exchange of ideas with scientists and policy-makers. It also highlighted some of the reasons that may have led a lack of success in past initiatives in environment information management. Some reasons that have been flagged include: no proper follow-ups; lack of momentum and driving force; no specific and clear goals of the initiative; lack of human skills, and unwillingness to share data and make data (freely) available to users. These factors have been taken into consideration for the future. Further, mechanisms to provide networking linkages to other organisations were also established. Implementing the AEIN project also enhanced cross-country exchanges, especially within the sub-region. For instance, experiences and lessons were shared through case studies and project reports. Lessons learnt One of the key lesson learnt through the implementation of AEIN were that linkages through networking is an important methodology a country can effectively use to address the availability and accessibility of environmental information needed for environmental management.

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CHAPTER 5: SYNTHESIS OF OUTCOMES AND LESSONS LEARNED Synthesis of outcomes Improved networking The conceptual design of the AEIN increased interactions between various stakeholders and networks in the countries. Each country was able to identify mechanisms appropriate to the country context to provide networking linkages with other organisations. Overall, collection, management, dissemination and updating of environmental information improved. The national assessments clearly identified relevant stakeholders, datasets and other tools and facilities needed to build an effective EIS. The process also encouraged interdisciplinary cooperation and networking, and this resulted in shared responsibilities and tackling of environmental issues in a more holistic manner. Data centres were often the main stakeholders involved in the networks and one major outcome was the opportunity to bring these stakeholders together so as to share experiences, exchange results and learn from each other. The AEIN also raised awareness on Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) and advised Collaborating Centres and partners on the need to develop fundamental or core environmental datasets, standards, policies and the importance of the capture of metadata. AEIN contributed to the removal of existing information vacuums creating a link between producers and users of information, including decision-makers and the youth. For instance one of the products of the AEIN and AEO-2 process was the AEO-for-youth. The process to produce the AEO-for-youth enabled young individuals and youth organisations to gather and exchange ideas regarding emerging environmental issues on the continent. It provided (and continues to provide) a forum for discussing environmental issues and exchanging ideas, and promoting effective networking among African youth. Such initiatives and products will require further attention. Better data management and environmental reporting The AEIN provided the stimulus and opportunity required to comprehensively identify all the institutions generating environmental data in their country, undertake data inventories, explore new methodologies for data management and employ clearing house mechanisms. Some institutions have responded positively by setting up data management units for their organizations. In some countries such as Ethiopia, Uganda and Zambia common standards for data exchange have been identified. The harmonised data has been entered into computerised databases and in some instances, disseminated to many stakeholders. This has ultimately led to the minimization of functional duplication and a more efficient utilization of available resources. Some of this data is now available through reports, research proposals and even new media such as internet portals. However, a lot still needs to be done regarding the data management process in all countries. Access to information improved not only in terms of quantity, but also quality. Indeed a simple analysis of SOE reports from the countries shows evidence of a more integrated approach to the analysis in the SOEs, and this indirectly points to a more ‘joined up’ approach to use of environment information at national level. The increased use of sciencebased data to support arguments for policy action has in a number of cases provided the basis

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for the adoption of new approaches for environment management. Lobbying and advocacy by groups, other than the regulatory authorities, is on the increase. Some of their information comes from the integrated analysis in environmental reports like the SOE which highlights policy gaps and issues of environmental concern especially as they relate to livelihoods and poverty. This was the case in Uganda, where there was an attempt to degazette the Butamira Forest Reserve in Eastern Uganda for commercial sugarcane growing. A local civil society group together with the community successfully challenged the government on the issue. The AEIN also ushered in a new approach to the process of compilation of the SOEs. By involving the different sectors, network members and thematic experts there has been marked improvement in the efficiency of the process and in the quality of the content. This is ultimately expected to be reflected in improved quality of input to the AEO-3. Improved awareness across the region Finally the sub-regions and countries are now more aware of the role of UNEP/DEWA in assisting African countries. They better understand UNEP/DEWA priorities and also the importance of working together for the continents good. The AEIN process has shown that the establishment of EIS or national EIN can provide a focal point from which policy makers and planners can obtain information to support accurate and viable decisions on environmentally related issues. There are increased instances of network products being quoted and also being used as required text for academic studies. This is shown by the type of outputs that have been reported in the assessment reports. These include the State of Environment Reports, Environmental Outlook reports and other environmental assessment reports. There has been a lot of improvement in the understanding of the concepts of the AEIN and networking of environmental stakeholders. The positive manner in which the stakeholders have embraced the AEIN concept was very encouraging. It showed that participants fully understood why AEIN and ultimately AEO would be of benefit to their countries. Training An integral part of the AEIN project design was the series of training programmes, workshops and meetings. Through these interactions, capacities and professional skills in ICT, data capture, and database development of staff at national level as well as at the collaborating institutions were greatly enhanced. Skills and methodologies for analysing data, generating policy-oriented and targeted environmental information, and for integrating such information into sustainable development decision making have also been improved.

Synthesis of lessons learned Programme versus project approach The initiative revealed that gaps always exist – even if the institutional and technical resources of the countries selected for the first phase were quite good. These gaps cannot be filled in the course of a one, two or three-year initiative. It is a very long process that needs to be followed up by the countries themselves. The data and integrated information management processes are a national asset and therefore must be internalised by national policies so that they can become sustainable. A programmatic approach would make it possible to deal with the AEIN issues in a broader context of national development with a longer timeframe for

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implementation, compared to a project approach which would restrict implementation to specific deliverables within a short timeframe and thereafter the activities are closed. Integration into existing programmes A key lesson learned was the need for sustainability. To ensure the long term sustainability of projects like the AEIN, it is very important that their concepts and methodologies be integrated into sub-regional and government activities and budgets. Sub-regional organisations can include ECOWAS, SADC, among others. This will ensure that additional stakeholders will become involved in national AEIN processes. Other programmes that environment information systems could be linked to are the National Spatial Data infrastructure (NSDI) initiatives so as to harmonize the data architecture and exploit the available resources to the maximum. Managing the network It is always important to start a network that is of a manageable size and made of committed partners (individuals and institutions). It demands a lot hard work to maintain and organize all stakeholders and the process should not be independent but complimentary to other ongoing country environment initiatives. AEIN should be driven by supporting activities that best address national. There is need however to provide adequate resources for the network to sustain itself and have continuity beyond the project. The AEIN pilot process has energized countries in looking for additional funding for the network. In order to offset the costs associated with data collection and processing, incentives should be built in the project design to attract major data providers to voluntarily provide the AEIN with the required information. It always pays to use an already existing functional network with its structures. AEIN must ensure that there isn’t duplication of effort. The existence of a network product such as the Africa Environment Outlook or National State of the Environment Report around which the members can coalesce is a step in the right direction (Gowa 2009). Such reporting is most effective when done on an outcome and output basis with accurate reporting of results and scheduling; the AEIN principles encourage this approach. Need for political support Political support is very important when such initiatives are implemented at the national level. Politicians must be informed and they must be involved at the early stages of the process and awareness should be raised among national stakeholders regarding the need for involving the politicians. Ensuring local ownership With UNEP supporting these processes, countries have tended to look at any outputs as UNEP products as opposed to network products. The reality is that national environment outlook reports or status reports on Environment Information Systems were produced by the countries and should therefore be looked at as national achievements. The lesson here is that it is important for the AEIN concept to be localised and owned by the participating institutions. Environmental information systems should be needs-driven and based on local demands for information to drive policy in a country. The assessments done during AEIN implementation have helped countries identify their specific EIS needs and if implemented within the cultural context will enhance ownership.

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The issue of ownership could be augmented by utilising existing national, sub-regional and regional (pan-African) networks. In any case, duplication of effort wastes valuable and scarce resources. For instance in Uganda, the incorporation of the AEIN into the existing EIN helped to overcome some of the institutional barriers that the AEIN might have experienced. Uganda has a decentralized EIS with common standards, where those with specific information mandates and responsibilities continue to collect, maintain and keep custody of that information. The existence of such a network allows for greater flexibility and discretion for participating institutions in developing their own environmental information systems. Building capacity Dependence on specific technologies must be minimised and any systems developed must be robust and should not be based on proprietary software. The cost associated with paying for software licenses could in the long term impede the development of national EIS’s. Interoperable systems must be adopted at early stages of the project. Also with the plethora of new data sources especially of Satellite imagery and other Earth Observation data available, systems must be able to handle large data volumes and must have the capacity to undertake the associated data analysis. At the professional level, core data centres invested heavily in training its manpower. However, many institutions have failed to maintain their human resources due to insufficient financial support. This financial backing has to be provided by national budgets. Therefore given the dynamics of technology and the need to share information, a number of skills areas need to be addressed; particularly the retention of information technology skills in the fields of Geo-Information and Environmental Sciences. High staff turnover can also been a constraint to sustained capacity building in some countries, as in Burkina Faso and Sudan. This can be addressed by ensuring that capacity building activities are diversified and focused on a pool of staff other than one focal person. This is the case in Senegal, Uganda and Zambia. Indeed despite significant staff mobility, the momentum of AEIN implementation in these three countries has been continuous. Human resources must be recruited, continually trained to be able to adapt to the regularly emerging technologies. It is imperative that staff is paid market rates to reduce mobility. Training of EIS practitioners should combine technology training and environmental information management. This should play a significant role in the formalisation of the development of EIS in Africa. There is need to encourage the collaboration between the EIS community and academic institutions. These academic institutions should be encouraged to incorporate EIS into their curricula. In addition universities must be encouraged to undertake research into some of the problem areas such as Geo-information database design and implementation. Finally the EIS initiatives should embrace new technologies so that decision-makers and planners have ready access to simple and easily understood reports and maps. Decision makers should never have to understand the EIS or GIS technology, they just need the concise facts on which to base their decisions. Visual presentation are often most effective at doing this. Communication strategies must be developed to meet the needs of the all possible clients. Selling a technological solution to a politician will fail. The development of the various environment outlook reports is an example of how information on our environment can be

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easily communicated. All countries should strive to regularly publish national environment outlook reports that capture salient environment issues.

Areas for improvement Financial considerations Some institutions have argued that there is enough institutional and technical capacity and that the weak point is financing of data collection and the demands for IT skills to support networking and information packaging. AEIN funding needs to take into consideration administrative expenditure such as postage, translation, telephone and transport expenses. These costs are often underestimated. Barriers to accessing information Language remains a barrier at all levels. In most cases, AEIN documentation is developed in English and then translated into French. Key technical concepts are at times lost in translation. In addition, the time lag between the publication of the English and French versions at times compromises the participating of Francophone Africa. A major requirement for an effective and efficient EIS is for smooth data flows and exchange, controlled by institutional policy and agreements. Data producers tend to cling on to their information and are reluctant to release it even to other divisions of their own organisation. These barriers impede sustainable data management policies which in turn prevent integrated development planning. Even when access to data is unimpeded, there might still be a problem in accessing data due the native format in which it exists. Systems that promote interoperability must be encouraged. Meta-data is still not captured and this impedes data discovery and encourages duplication hence vital financial resources are misallocated to data capture. Institutional barriers are also seen as a major stumbling block to the successful implementation of AEIN. The institutional framework of producers, suppliers and distributors of data and information often limits the circulation of information. Legislative barriers, too, can impede data sharing and dissemination. UNEP/DEWA through AEIN must encourage countries to encourage open access to environment datasets. Policy support There is little or no information on policy that guides access to and the management of environment information in most of the pilot countries. The bottom line for any network to function relies on institutional commitment. Institutional commitment can be ensured through integration of EIS concepts into policy and through political support. Therefore to guarantee and maintain top management commitment continuous awareness campaigns around AEIN and local EIN activities must carried out. Countries must also lobby to ensure that they formalise EIN concepts. Implementing time frame Some countries believe that there was an unrealistic time frame and work plan for the pilot phase implementation and that the project was poorly planned and the roles of the Collaborating Centres were not clearly defined and stipulated.

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PART 3: MOVING THE AEIN INTO THE FUTURE

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CHAPTER 6: ANALYSING THE BIG PICTURE SWOT analysis In order to analyse the bigger picture, it is important to synthesize the AEIN experiences in all pilot countries and through an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOTs) discern issues that need to be addressed in light of stated AEIN objectives. This is important because subsequent steps in the process of planning for the development of future AEIN programmes may be derived from these SWOTs. The chapter also attempts to recommend how we address the identified issues in order to move forward. The SWOT analysis is presented in table 9. Table 9: SWOT analysis Issue Data availability

•

•

•

Use of the EIS and data products in environmental management

•

Strength AEIN has provided the tools to identify key datasets needed to support environmental management activities. Data gaps have been identified and strategies to address them have been developed with the support of all stakeholders. In many cases the environmental regulatory agency has the mandate to coordinate the collection and management of environmental data. Some countries like Uganda and Ghana have successfully used EIS to address key environmental concerns at national and community levels.

•

•

•

•

•

EIS networks and structures

•

•

The establishment of project management within UNEP/DEWA and the development of a Framework document and project implementation strategy. Establishment of an institutional network comprising six sub-regional AEO/GEO collaborating centres and 13 national focal institutions, identified by the individual governments.

•

Weakness The mandate of the environmental regulatory agencies is not backed by clearly defined policies. A notable exception to this is Uganda. In most cases their mandates are not explicit with respect to third party information.

Funding needed to support network activities is not adequate. Non-standard, incompatible, or out-of-date data makes it difficult for organizations to effectively network. Ownership, copyright and cost recovery issues make it difficult for institutions to effectively share data. EIS are still not enshrined in the constitutions of many of countries except Uganda.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

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Opportunity The newly established or existing EIN networks provide avenues for collective data exchange mechanisms. Frameworks already developed under networks such as EINMS in Zambia, NAFGM in Ghana and elsewhere provide an opportunity for other countries to see if they can implement similar activities.

•

•

•

The decision by UNEP to designate the AEIN as the Africa regional component of the proposed Environment Watch System.

•

The existence of a PanAfrican organisation like EIS-AFRICA which is championing the creation of functional network in Africa and providing useful data products. All countries have successfully assessed their needs and have started developing functional networks. Data and information required for environment management identified in many countries. Functional links created during AEIN implementation.

•

•

•

•

Threat Commercial interests in economic sectors may hamper cooperation. High cost of data conversion and technology expertise. Information seen as power base and retained for this purpose.

Little integration of information systems at national level, and even less at a regional level. Other competing initiatives may spring up.

Legal frameworks and cost of data collection hinder sustainability. Poor communications, access and documentation. Lack of business driver and costs (No incentive or reason to improve services and possibly disincentives, Cost to publish and support process).

Issue Capacity building

Major outcomes

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• •

Lessons learnt

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Strength Many countries have started offering training courses in Geo-Information and do provide an environmental lab facility. These facilities are available to the public at a cost.

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AEIN focal points have been designated in all focal countries. Environment Outlook and SOE reports have been produced on time.

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The implementation of EIS initiatives has induced the growth of allied disciplines such as in the electronic communication sector.

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Weakness Lack of long term research programme leading to MSc, PhD to entice Universities to provide consultancy services below cost.

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Opportunity Some universities in Uganda, Zambia, and Ghana are already supporting research activities. Long term agreements and international collaboration may provide incentives.

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Budgets are not available for EIS activities in many countries. EIS activities mainly supported by donors.

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There is significant awareness on SDI in some pilot countries and this has led to the creation of metadata to support network activities.

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The IT phenomenon has taken root thus more IT skills are required to blend with traditional skills such as GIS and remote sensing.

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Mainstream technologies such as GIS and remote sensing are blending with IT. Greater chance to entrench environmental technologies in mainstream IT functions.

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Threat The training is provided at commercial cost thus may be beyond the financial means available Lack of training facilities and personnel at these training institutions due to migration to other areas in search of green pasture. Many skills required to adequately address environment management are crossing over to the IT sector thus creating capacity gaps for many environmental professionals. IT professionals have better chance of adapting in environmental information than those with an environmental background.

Recommendations The AEIN programme has gone a long way in trying to improve the management of environmental information in the region. This is evident through the positive impacts that are seen in the different countries. In order to keep up the momentum generated, the AEIN needs to keep evolving to meet the challenges posed by new policy drivers, new technologies and the geo-political issues on the African continent. In light of the SWOT analysis presented above, this section of the report indicates some areas for improvement and issues for consideration in the future. Capacity building • Strengthen the environmental data or information centres of AEIN participating countries. This can be done by building the capacity of manpower and ICT infrastructure. Some areas for assistance include computer networking, database management across networks, geo-referencing of data, data management for integrated environmental reporting, data conversion/digitization (from non-electronic to electronic formats), building of national information portals and ICT and GIS training. Specifically: o National EIS’s should be trained to enable them produce integrated environmental assessments and monitoring reports as inputs to sustainable development, poverty reduction and good governance plans. o Competencies should be built in creating and managing databases to support sustainable development actions at national level. o Document management should be improved in terms of archiving and data security at national and regional level. o The ability of organisations to develop their own information system frameworks should be enhanced.

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o Data quality (validity and reliability) management should be improved by establishing systems to verify quality of data gathered for instance, a source check. Strengthen local, national and regional capacities to analyse, and use multi-sectoral information for decision making. In order for this to be effective there will need to be better identification and stratification of users, both public and private, and of their information needs at the local, regional, and national levels. In this manner, it will be much easier to produce targeted information products. Provide technical assistance to support the AEIN National Node as the host institution for the national AEIN node. This will be required at various stages of project implementation. Facilitate capacity building through internships and other collaboration, which allows for exchange and sharing of expertise. Investigate the potential of expanding the FK Norway Exchange programme to all partners in AEIN.

Networking and awareness building • Establish and support a National Environmental Information exchange network among partner institutions and ensure its sustainability. Some specific activities could include the following: o Core data centres must be involved in the project design with a view to achieving ‘political buy-in’ before the project starts. o Strengthen and establish new collaboration between organisations involved in environmental management and sustainable development. o Harness expertise in information management that already exists in order to achieve a common goal for environmental information management. o Facilitate the establishment of a ‘National Directory of Institution and Information Sources for environmental management’ (a metadata system) and establish a mechanism to keep it up to date. o Develop linkages with leading international organisations and networks in information management. o Provide information management tools, guidelines and standards for data/information management to ensure smooth operation of the network. o Implement national environmental information portals that are web-based and database driven so that information is collected in a central repository. o Promote open source, interoperable technologies where possible to reduce cost. • Awareness building strategies should be strengthened as these will increase network visibility and enhance the effectiveness and relevance of its activities thus ensuring sustainability. Activities could include: o Regional, sub-regional and national campaigns highlighting the importance of environmental reporting – aimed at decision-makers as well as public and private economic role players should be developed. o Having awareness days on the national environmental information network. o UNEP/DEWA supporting national, sub-regional and regional newsletter publications on AEIN. o Writing and publishing regular monthly articles in existing newsletters such as EIS-News. o Holding annual workshops to raise awareness on national SOE and other environmental reports

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o Participating in regional conferences such as AARSE and AFRICAGIS. UNEP/DEWA must make regular keynote addresses on the work being done of AEIN at such events. EIS structures and policies • African governments should be encouraged to make state of environment reporting mandatory. • There is need for ICT policies that will guide the development of national information and ICT infrastructure, including spatial data infrastructure. This could also include an EIS or GIS roadmap. • African countries need to develop and implement policies that remove barriers to access to data and information. Use of EIS and data products • More effort needs to be made to ensure availability of data at the sub-regional and the sub-national levels. Most of the data presently available for distribution within the 12 pilot countries are at the national level. Environmental analysis could be greatly improved by widening data capture to these levels. • There needs to be a concerted effort at developing and packaging information products that meet the needs of information users and that strategically support decision-makers at different levels. • Constraints that limit access to the Internet need to be addressed. Budgetary constraints and poor telecommunication infrastructure are the main factors limiting the use of electronic media within many of the AEIN pilot institutions. This limits their ability to use new media to market and promote AEIN activities.

Additional considerations for the future In light of the recommendations presented in the previous section, the following key points need to be taken into consideration for the successful implementation of the next phase of the AEIN. 1. Streamlining the legal and institutional framework: Not many institutions where the AEIN was piloted had the mandate for environmental reporting, and this could lead to some operational hurdles in the future. In order to facilitate mainstreaming of environmental reporting it will be necessary to strengthen the policy and legal environment for the management of environmental information. 2. Strengthening institutional arrangements: Although a number of organisations have been involved in collecting data on the environment, the relationship between institutions with respect to environmental data and reporting is not well co-ordinated or structured. The implementation of the AEIN provided a forum where countries could identify key institutions and therefore the data needed to meet the AEIN objectives. But this process still left a lot to be desired in as far as formal collaborative arrangements are concerned. There is also a need to undertake an assessment of the ongoing initiatives that have similar goals and objectives to AEIN. This would ensure integrated information management, alignment of policy imperatives and reduce duplication of efforts. 3. Improving information management: EIS development is at different stages of maturity in Africa. UNEP/DEWA has already put in a lot of effort to ensure that national EIS frameworks are expanded. The ultimate aim is for these to be up-scaled to subregional and eventually an Africa-wide EIN framework. In order to further support this,

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4.

5.

6.

7.

UNEP/DEWA must provide where necessary guidelines on the implementation of National EIS’s as this will assist countries in understanding their hardware, software, data, human resource and budgetary needs. By providing such guidelines, countries should be able to recognise and move through the different stages of information management according to their local context. Spatial Data Infrastructure and data exchange formats: A common finding across the countries is that the core environmental dataset needed to address key environmental issues often existed in various formats that were not easily transferable. Data quality and reliability was poor and where data did exist it was out of date. Data handling (including transfer and storage) has to be addressed and will require some form of standardisation and conformance with internationally recognised protocols. Spatial Data Infrastructure is one such tool that facilitates data exchange. However, the awareness of SDI across the pilot countries could be improved. The AEIN should promote the principals and value of SDI in any future implementation. Maintaining human resources capacity: Many data centres have invested heavily in staff training only to lose their human resources to greener pastures. Staff attrition is a normal occurrence in the work place and needs to be planned for in a strategic manner. Continuous skills development has to be budgeted for - not only to train new staff but also to retain existing staff and to prevent the brain drain phenomena from crippling the environmental information networks. On the positive side, many of the staff that do leave continue to work within the environment information arena and therefore could be looked as a potential resource in terms of garnering support and resources towards their original institutions or home countries. Financial resources: Ensuring adequate and regular financial resources has been quite a challenge throughout this phase. It is also likely to continue to be an issue of concern in the future. If the AEIN programmes are to be sustainable, it is important to look at the process as a long-term programme and not as a project. The process should also be incorporated into national government programmes in order for it to be allocated dedicated funds from national budgets. The reality is that EIN activities such as integrated environmental analysis are costly and lengthy and many times can only be justified by making activities relevant to the contemporary policy issues. In essence one will be providing an indirect cost-benefit analysis of the entire process. For instance by making environmental reporting relevant to poverty which was a key government priority, the National Environment Management Authority in Uganda, has shown policy makers that information (specifically environment information) is a critical empowering factor in efforts to eradicate poverty and improve management and governance of the environment. Against that background, the Ministry of Water and Environment in 2007 integrated elements of the EIN into the sector investment plan thus ensuring an element of sustainability for the programme. From an Africa-wide perspective, UNEP/DEWA as custodians of the AEO must ensure the data provided for AEO is accurate and one way of doing this is to ensure that countries invest sufficient funds in building technical, individual and institutional capacities. Since there is a cost to this, UNEP/DEWA is encouraged to use its leveraging power to attract donor funding to assist countries. Networking and coordination: Networking and coordination mechanisms between data producers and users could be better systematised at all levels. UNEP/DEWA should enlist support at the regional level to assist with this. There are existing networks whose expertise can be leveraged to assist with various aspects of AEIN activities and ensure the success of future phases of AEIN implementation. The roles of the sub-regional collaborating centres have to be more clearly defined especially if the network is to be expanded as this will place more responsibility and stress on their organisations. To this

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end, there is need for a sub-regional AEIN strategy, which among other things should emphasise strong linkages between sub-regional and national EIN networks. At the national level, there is need to ensure that the national EIN is formalised and mainstreamed into the national environmental institutional framework. 8. Networking data producers: At national level government institutions, private institutions and to some extent NGO are the main producers of the majority of data. However, much of this data capture is done in an uncoordinated manner without strict guidelines and policies. Duplication is often a consequence of this. There is therefore an immediate need for a unified National Environment Information Portal where users from different places can source this data. Institutions also need to develop institutional databases which will also promote data quality control mechanisms. There should be effective sub-regional linkages to ensure that AEIN activities will be prioritised even while countries are working on other national policy priorities. 9. Filling data gaps: The reality across the pilot countries is that the data collection and information infrastructure is still weak. To address the data gaps issue, base or foundational data definitions and identification and collection must be prioritised emphasising activities using different technologies including remote sensing and GIS. Countries must as a matter of urgency compile a catalogue of core environmental datasets, do a gap analysis and publish metadata on existing datasets. Technical backstopping could be provided by UNEP/DEWA with regard to this issue. 10. Developing national Environmental Information Systems: While considering data issues, it is important to concurrently envisage the development of an information system to manage that data. The priority data has to be collected, captured and stored in a system that could allow for data manipulation, analysis, visualisation or reporting as the case may be. Training programmes on the development and management of an EIS, collection, capture and storage of data could be structured by UNEP/DEWA and facilitated by experts from within the region. Elements of the EIS could include a national environmental data portal, GIS databases and remote sensing analysis. These should be structured to support the local SOE reporting system and ultimately the AEO. Further capacity can also be built in the co-ordinating bodies and partner institutions in the area of ICT (EIS and GIS), information management and integrated environmental assessment and reporting. 11. Marketing and Communication should be considered an essential aspect of the AEIN. It is necessary to constantly market the AEIN products and activities to the various publics at the regional, sub-regional and national level. Such an outreach strategy ensures visibility and knowledge of the networks products and services while also enhancing awareness on key environmental policies. Marketing and communication strategies must thus be an integral part of the AEIN phase two implementation strategy. In addition, UNEP/DEWA must continue to work with the African Network of Environmental Journalists (ANEJ) and other prominent regional EIS networking organisations to assist with this process. Other channels like internet websites, environmental portals could also be used. At national level, countries could be trained in desktop publishing to produce their own materials like newsletters and flyers, among others. 12. Language is a key area of concern for smooth implementation of the AEIN in future. There has to be a serious effort made to produce materials in French, Arabic and Portuguese to facilitate total participation of all African countries. Vital information is at times lost in translation and this places non-English speaking countries at a distinct disadvantage. This will undoubtedly constrain the adoption of AEIN in non-English speaking regions of Africa and could ultimately lead to the failure of AEIN and impact the validity of the AEO report.

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Conclusion The importance of good environment management cannot be overstated. The multidisciplinary nature of environmental issues coupled with the fragmentation of data and information across sectors and institutions makes it vital to have structures and systems in place to harness the best available scientific data to support decision making from regional down to the local level. This cannot be achieved without the implementation of new and emerging tools and approaches. Environment information networks and systems are the strategic tools by which stakeholders can use current information technology and other resources to create meaningful improvements in conserving the environment. From the foregoing, there is substantial justification for the development and implementation of a second phase of the AEIN programme. The lessons learned during this first phase should be considered and where necessary any shortcomings addressed. Funding, equipment technical and data issues are some of the challenges that have arisen during the implementation of the first phase of the AEIN programme. But there have also been successes as shown by the creative ways in which countries have used the AEIN processes to support development. Either way it takes effort and dedication on the part of all national institutions to get to the stage where environment related data is systematically used to support decision making. But it can be done. This best practices document provides a snapshot of both the successes achieved and challenges faced in managing environmental data and information across the region and can give valuable guidance to those wishing to improve environmental information management. References Kiss, C. and M. Ewing (undated). Environmental Democracy. An Assessment of Access to Information, Participation in Decision Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Selected European Countries. The Access Initiative. European Regional Report. MCT (2006). National Information and Communication Technology Policy. Ministry of Communications and Transport (MCT) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Lusaka. Also available on: http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/unpan/unpan032690.pdf NEMA (2004). State of the Environment Report for Uganda, 2004. National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Kampala, Uganda. NEMA (2008). State of the Environment Report for Uganda, 20084. National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Kampala, Uganda. Paradzayi,C. and H. Rüther (undated). Evolution Of Environmental Information Systems In Africa. Department of Geomatics, University of Cape Town, South Africa. ROZ (2006). Fifth National Development Plan 2006. Republic of Zambia (ROZ), Lusaka, Zambia. Also available on: http://www.undp.org.zm/joomla/attachments/033_zambia_fndp.pdf?8e2474a80d13c9785641fc2923161380=tjlirsejf UNEP/NEMA 2004. Inception meeting for Africa Environment Information Network in the Eastern Africa Subregion. Workshop Report. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)/National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Kampala, Uganda. UNEP (2002). AEIN Implementation Strategy. Phase 1: 2003-2004. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Nairobi.

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Wikipaedia 2009. Spatial Data Infrastructure. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spatial_data_infrastructure

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Wikipaedia.

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