Title: Review of the United Nations Expert Group Meeting on Contemporary Practices in Census Mapping and Use of Geographical Information Systems
1Review of the United Nations Expert Group Meeting
on Contemporary Practices in Census Mapping and
Use of Geographical Information Systems
Workshop on Census Cartography and Management,
Lusaka, Zambia, 08-12 October 2007
2Overview of the EGM
- 29 May-1 June 2007
- United Nations, New York
- Organized by the Demographic Statistics Section
of the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD),
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) - Participants from 22 Member Countries
- Final Report issued mid-June 2007
3Attendees of the EGM
- Representatives of
- national statistical offices
- national mapping offices
- academic/research institutions
- private sector companies, and
- international and regional organizations
- Member Countries
- Australia , Brazil, Canada, China, India,
Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Latvia, Mexico,
Morocco, Namibia, Oman, the Philippines,
Portugal, Russian Federation, Sierra Leone,
South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey,
Ukraine, and the United States of America
4Other Participants
- Academic/research institutions
- Florida State University
- George Washington University
- Private Sector companies
- GeoSpace International
- ESRI
- International and regional organizations
- United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
- CPS - Secretariat Général de la Communanté du
Pacifique - See Annex 2 of the Final Report for List of
Participants
5Objectives of the EGM
- Review the conceptual framework and different
approaches to census mapping and the capabilities
offered by advanced geospatial technologies (GIS,
GPS, Remote Sensing, Internet Mapping, etc.) to
support census mapping operations - Review of geo-coding concepts and approaches with
respect to data collection - Assess the use of GPS and other geospatial
technologies for digital delineation of
enumeration areas and data collection - Review the development of geographic databases,
spatial analysis and data dissemination - Identify organizational and institutional issues
associated with census cartography.
6Main Topics Presented
- GIS-based census mapping approaches some country
experiences - Geo-coding concepts and definitions, and
approaches to data collection - Use of GPS and geospatial technologies for data
collection, and digital delineation of
enumeration areas - Geographic databases, spatial analysis and data
dissemination - Organizational and institutional issues
- GIS-based census mapping applications by GIS
services providers.
7Presentations
- All papers and presentations are available at
- http//unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/meetings/e
gm/CensusMappingEGM07/default.htm - See Annex 3 of the Final Report for Organization
of Work, including the list of presentations
8Highlights
- Institutional, organizational and capacity
building issues - Use of GIS, GPS and other geospatial technologies
for census geography - Geo-coding concepts and definitions, and coding
schemes - Level of geographic features for data collection
and dissemination - Enumeration areas (EA) design
9Highlights (cont.)
- Geo-coding census data and confidentiality issues
Database conceptual framework - Maintenance of geographic features, geographic
databases and related software - Quality of data and combination with other
sources - Link of Population Census with Agriculture Census
- Disaster Management
- Dissemination issues and census advocacy
10Recommendations - General
- The meeting recommended and strongly supported
the use of geo-spatial and Geographical
Information Systems technologies for the 2010
round of population and housing censuses, taking
into consideration national and local
circumstances.
11Recommendations - General
- National Statistical Organizations should
- Develop and set-up institutional and
organizational structures to implement a census
geography programme - Ensure the availability of adequate resources to
that end - Institute and maintain training programmes for
national staff - Develop mechanisms for retaining GIS trained
staff and - Actively participate, in partnership with other
national authorities, in the development of a
national geographical information capacity,
including the National Spatial Data
Infrastructure (SDI).
12Recommendations - General
- United Nations Statistics Division should
- Continue to facilitate exchange of national
experiences - Introduce on-line facility including e-learning
material for exchange and sharing of knowledge - Compile lessons learned emphasizing advantages
and limitations - Develop guidelines for census geography
13Recommendations - Use of contemporary
technologies for census geography
- Applying these technologies (satellite imagery,
aerial photography, GPS, GIS) is beneficial to
the efficiency and quality of the population and
housing census, specifically for - Delineation of enumeration areas
- Supervision of data collection
- Dissemination at small area level
- Single solution does not fit all
- Significant investment in hardware, software and
human capital
14Recommendations - Geo-coding for statistical
purposes
- Geo-coding Associating geographical to features
such as structures, buildings, dwellings,
streets, addresses, enumeration areas - Different methods GPS, PDA, satellite imagery
- National statistical agencies need to consider
geo-coding approach for 2010 round of censuses - Geographical coding schemes harmonization and
uniformity - Dwelling Frame/Address Registry
15Recommendations - Geographical databases and data
dissemination
- Significant value of geographical database for
census data collection, processing and
dissemination for small areas - Inclusion on non-census items such as schools,
roads, rivers, settlements - Long-term and significant commitment is crucial
- National statistical agencies should develop
web-based mapping tools
16Recommendations - Handbook on geographic
information systems and digital mapping
17Recommendations - Handbook on geographic
information systems and digital mapping
- Current issue still valuable
- Requires updates and review
- Putting a focus on censuses
- Emphasizing continuous character of census
geography programmes - Underway
- Expected by mid-2008
18Recommendations - Spatial Data Infrastructure
(SDI)
- Definition - the technology, policies, standards,
human resources, and related activities necessary
to acquire, process, distribute, use, maintain,
and preserve spatial data - Part of a nations e-Gov strategy
- www.GSDI.org