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ICIMOD's Approach Towards a Regional Geo-Information Infrastructure (RGII) in the Hindu-Kush Himlayan (HKH) Region
Case Studies and Database development
Besides the training programmes, MENRIS also undertook several case studies in collaboration with national agencies. Although smaller in scale, these case studies demonstrated how GIS technology can be useful in addressing the real world problems in the mountain environment. Another aspect on which MENRIS put emphasis was on development of regional databases. "Nepal GIS Database of Key Indicators of Sustainable Development" was the result of this effort. The publication of the "Climatic and Hydrological Atlas of Nepal" was another addition in database development. A number of datasets have been compiled on Bangladesh, Pakistan, Tibet and Bhutan as a result of this effort. Besides, MENRIS has acquired a substantial amount of satellite images of the region through its different projects. However, the database on Nepal has been more extensive compared to the other countries due to easier accessibility of the data.
Experiences in the HKH
Much has been achieved in generating awareness and human resources development in the field of GIS and Remote Sensing through the efforts of MENRIS almost over one decade. The evolution of new generation PCs, the emerging of user friendly desktop GIS packages, and the global trend of the wider acceptance of GIS technology have certainly helped in its efforts in the later part of the 90's.
However, capacity building is a resource consuming and continuos task and requires institutional dynamism and initiatives to make it a viable technological option. Also, it is difficult to keep pace with the speed of development in computer hardware and software. The lack of long-term funds makes it difficult to upgrade the GIS software, which appear with new versions every few months.
Besides, there are many issues related to spatial data development and sharing. There is a need to understand the implications and interrelationships of various processes involved in the management of natural resources - both at micro and macro levels. The information requirement and flow of information within a level and between different levels in these processes should be used as a basis for data collection and data exchange framework. The major problems with existing information are that the knowledge of resources and its use are insufficient, information is dispersed, heterogeneous, and inaccessible. The available information is not sufficiently relevant in terms of continuity, reliability and the nature of parameters. Considerable effort is required to integrate the separate national datasets to produce a consistent regional dataset. This is because the datasets have been produced for the specific needs of each nation, with lack of common standards [Bajracharya, 2000].
There are many trans-boundary concerns in the region such as the issues of environmental degradation, forest depletion and soil erosion, poverty and migration, sharing of water resources, which are increasingly being recognised to be of a regional domain. To effectively address the regional environmental issues there is a need for an improved understanding of the current status of key components of the region. The region can benefit from better management of its spatial information by taking a perspective that starts from the district and national levels and works up to the regional level. There is a need for a network of databases located throughout the region that together provide the fundamental data needed to achieve *the region's economic, social, human resources development and environmental objectives. If regional member countries adopt a regional perspective they will not only avoid wasting resources but will be able to provide users with consistent, reliable data that can be used to address the regional issues of common interest.
The RGII perspective
The concept of a Regional Geo-Information Infrastructure (RGII) has been envisaged to overcome these hindrances and develop an environment for economic use of the spatial information, which is accessible to all the professionals working for the development of the region. The long term goal of having a RGII is to develop networks of regional institutions linked by intra-regional institutional framework that provides mechanisms for sharing experience, technology transfer and coordination of development of fundamental datasets of the region [Bitter and Shrestha, 1999]. To initiate the development of RGII, MENRIS has incorporated several activities in its Second Regional Collaborative Programme (RCP-II)* with the primary objectives to increase the availability and accessibility of relevant geographic data on the region, and to enhance the exchange of geographic information within the region. These activities broadly fall under one of these categories:
- Capacity building
- Facilitation of data exchange
- Development of regional geographic database
- Networking
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