Source: www.dailypost.vu
The assessment hypothesis is that if the Department of Climate Change and the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning implement the Memorandum of Understanding as described, then access to and sharing of geospatial information between the two departments will improve and wider information sharing across Government will be supported. This hypothesis is derived directly from the stated expected outcomes of the agreement. The agreement as described does not state implementation timelines, data standards, governance procedures or quantified performance measures.
Agreement Instrument and Parties
The Department of Climate Change and the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning have formalised an agreement to share and manage geospatial data. DoCC Director under the Ministry of Climate Change Adaptation, Mike Waiwai, and DUAP Director under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Jeffrey Kaitip, formalised the agreement on September 25. The instrument is a Memorandum of Understanding. It provides a framework for the departments to work together on sharing, managing and using LiDAR, which is remote sensing data, and other geospatial data. It is intended to give both departments better access to reliable spatial information to support their respective planning activities, policy development and decision-making.
Data Sharing and Management Framework
The MOU establishes the framework for sharing, managing and using LiDAR and other geospatial data between DoCC and DUAP. Its scope is data access, data management and data use between the two departments. The framework is the enabling instrument for the operational applications that follow and is distinct from those applications.
Operational Applications and Cooperation
The collaboration will support climate change planning, urban and infrastructure planning, and related decision-making, and the agreement provides for the development and use of decision-support tools, including the integration of climate and disaster risk information into planning. Separately, the collaboration will support disaster risk reduction through hazard, exposure and risk mapping, emergency planning and recovery, which concerns hazard, exposure and risk products and emergency management functions rather than general planning. The departments will also work to strengthen Geographic Information System and remote sensing capacity through joint training, knowledge sharing and technical support, an institutional capability activity distinct from data sharing itself and from planning outcomes.
In addition, the departments will undertake joint mapping and assessments of vulnerable infrastructure and critical assets, producing joint analytical products on infrastructure and assets that are separate from hazard mapping and from capacity building. The departments will work together on projects and funding opportunities that support the priorities of both departments, which concerns project and funding cooperation rather than the data framework itself or the planning applications.
For DUAP specifically, the agreement will support urban planning initiatives by providing access to climate, hazard and geospatial information when developing plans, policies, zoning, development controls and other planning decisions.The departments will work together on projects and funding opportunities that support the priorities of both departments. This concerns project and funding cooperation, not the data framework itself and not the planning applications.
Conclusion
The MOU is expected to improve access to and sharing of geospatial information between DoCC and DUAP and contribute to wider information sharing across Government. The conclusion is conditional and evidence-bounded: the stated outcome is an expectation, not a measured result, because the agreement as described does not include implementation timelines, data standards, governance procedures or quantified performance measures.
Link: