VROMI Ministry Secretary-General Louis Brown, Department of Statistics head Makini Persaud-Hickinson and Minister Miklos Giterson.
MEXICO–Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Miklos Giterson and Secretary-General Louis Brown recently attended the Latin America Geospatial Forum in Mexico City, Mexico.
The forum saw representatives of more than 40 countries gathered under the theme “Geospatial Information: Making a Difference for Millions.” This forum is the largest regional conference on geospatial information and technologies and it provided a platform to meet and network with regional leaders and experts of the geospatial domain.
Giterson said the forum had provided great insight into many different areas in which geospatial information technology is being used to acquire, manipulate and store geographic information.
Sessions focused on “Climate Change and Natural Disasters” and “Construction and Engineering” – two areas of particular interest to Giterson. “These sessions were very timely, given Sint Maarten’s and all small island developing states’ vulnerability to climate change and the resulting increase of natural disasters that we are now faced with,” he said.
It was discussed and demonstrated at the climate change forum how geospatial information can be used to develop national strategic plans that can help in measuring the environmental, social and economic impact of natural disasters.
Also discussed at that symposium was the use of geostatistical networks for monitoring biodiversity and climate change, and geostatistical solutions for the study of territorial and environmental dynamics.
The construction and engineering session focused on moving countries towards more resilient planning and better design of infrastructure. It also touched on ways to operate and maintain infrastructure efficiently and effectively, as well as post-disaster infrastructure reconstruction and recovery.
Giterson said attendance at this forum had been of particular importance, as it tied perfectly to the National Spatial Data Infrastructure consultation session the VROMI Ministry held with stakeholders in August. One of the main goals of that session was to discuss the importance of sharing each organisation’s GIS layer to create maps with more accurate and detailed information.
In its completed state the National Geographic Information System of St. Maarten will feature information on all established zoning plans, protected monuments, issued permits and countless other geospatial data features that may be useful for planning, policy development, enterprise asset management and other purposes.
This system will be particularly beneficial to institutions that require accurate and current digital geographic information about St. Maarten to increase their service efficiency and effectiveness.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/82718-giterson-attends-geospatial-forum
View comments
Hide comments