Transferability of the Qatar Enterprise GIS Model: Experience in Vietnam and Jamaica
Jerry C. Coiner, Ph.D.
Remote Sensing & Information Systems Co.
Kailua-Kona, HI USA
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Enterprise GIS
An enterprise Geographical Information System (GIS) is defined as a GIS that is used by multiple agencies within an organization. In the context of public administration, enterprise GIS describes a GIS that is used by numerous offices, i.e., ministeries, departments, and/or agencies in a government. As a way to obtain government information more effectively and cheaply, many developing-country governments are pursuing the establishment of an enterprise GIS. Beginning in 1989, the State of Qatar began to explore the use of enterprise GIS, and now, it is one of the most successful examples of a government which uses enterprise GIS on an operational basis. The Qatar experience provides a model for other developing-country governments interested in the use of enterprise GIS.
The Qatar Model
The Qatar model of enterprise GIS implementation can best be described as a series of activities that focus on common GIS requirements of participating government agencies and the development of a basic set of spatial data to meet those common requirements. The procedural steps that identify the commonalities are:
Organization
Familiarization
Prototyping
Standardization
Cooperation
Base Mapping
Data Sharing
Applications
Figure 1 illustrates the sequencing of the procedural steps.
Figure 1: Sequence of Procedural Steps for Enterprise GIS
The steps form an enterprise GIS development sequence, starting with Organization and Familiarization and proceeding through Base Mapping and Data Sharing to the ultimate goal of Applications within the government.
In this paper, each of the steps is discussed in general terms based on the Qatar experience. Then, each procedural step is reviewed in the context of how it is addressed by the governments of Jamaica and HCMC.
Organization
The Qatar model develops a GIS within the government by focusing on the way each of the government's administrative agencies, i.e., the bureaucracy, acquires, processes and uses spatial data. There are two critical management mechanisms, the GIS Steering Committee and the Centre for GIS.
GIS Steering Committee
The GIS Steering Committee is the government's GIS policy making body that establishes the overall structure of the system and its uses. The Committee incorporates all government agencies using GIS and acts as the interface to political entities in the government. The Steering Committee also prioritizes the use of GIS resources and resolves conflicts that may arise between agencies concerning data sharing.
In Jamaica, the Prime Minister's Office established the Land Information Council in 1989 to coordinate GIS development within the government of Jamaica. The Council's main function has been to document existing GIS applications within the government. Council meetings, which are held as frequently as every month, inform government agencies of GIS activities in the public and private sector. However, the Council lacks the authority to develop and enforce standards, to provide technical support, or to order data sharing among government agencies. This has limited the Council's effectiveness in successfully supporting GIS development within the government. In fact, a number of GIS projects within specific agencies have failed because of a lack of technical resources that were available in other government agencies but could not be redirected by the Council.
In 1995, HCMC with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) assistance, began development of a multi-agency AM/FM/GIS for the planning and management of physical infrastructure within HCMC. After recommendations from international consultants and study tours to Singapore, Bangkok and Doha, the City government decided that a steering committee model based on Qatar should be used to establish GIS policy within HCMC. The formal decree establishing the committee currently is being considered by the People's Committee.
The Centre for GIS
The Centre for GIS is the locus for GIS activity within government. The Centre provides the information technology resources that form the backbone of the GIS and maintains expertise in information systems essential for development of applications that make up the GIS. The Centre also provides technical expertise to the Steering Committee and to government agencies undertaking specific GIS applications. Such support helps to standardize GIS activities within the government.
Relationships among the political and administrative arms of government, the GIS Steering Committee, and the Centre for GIS are illustrated in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Governmental Relationships for Enterprise GIS
Note: all relationships or policy flows within the government are two-way. For example, between the Political Bodies and the GIS Steering Committee, the flow begins with Political Bodies sending GIS requirements to the GIS Steering Committee, while requests for resources flow from the GIS Steering Committee to the Political Bodies. Between Governmental Agencies and the GIS Steering Committee, the flow originates with GIS applications requirements of the Agencies, while the Steering Committee establishes for Governmental Agencies data standards and prioritization. The multiple relationships of the four elements in Figure 2 illustrate the complex and fuzzy nature of decision making that can occur in an enterprise GIS environment. Figure 2 also points out the need for a well-defined management structure for GIS to be in place within the government before actual development of an enterprise GIS is undertaken.
In the case of GIS in Jamaica, GIS development began first within government agencies, and coordinating mechanisms were developed after applications were well established for specific projects within the agencies. This led to a number of problems when attempts were made to extend GIS activities beyond the original project orientation of the initial applications. For example, digital cartographic bases developed within the Survey of Jamaica were neither organized nor scaled appropriately to use as digital bases for AM/FM/GIS activities now being undertaken by the public utilities.
In the HCMC case, survey data for infrastructure will be developed from field data that allow multiple scales appropriate to a number of different agency requirements. These map bases are still in prototype and are being developed with the cooperation of various governmental agencies by the City's GIS project. This project will be the core activity from which the HCMC Centre for GIS will be established. Currently, the project is being managed by the Chief Architect's Office with the cooperation of the Board of Cartography and Construction Survey.
Familiarization
How do various potential participants in an enterprise GIS find out about the technology and its applications? The sources are numerous and include:
Education
Word-of-Mouth
Professional Associations
Meetings
Marketing
International Technical Assistance
Site Visits
Each source of information has biases which may reduce its viability as an objective source of information. For instance, educational approaches tend to fixate on the theory or mechanics of GIS, while word-of-mouth diffusion seems to highlight systems implementation problems, just as presentations at professional associations and meetings tend to emphasize successful aspects of systems development. Also, marketing and international technical assistance can be highly product-oriented. Probably, the best sources of information on enterprise GIS are site visits, but those are often difficult to arrange and implement.
Currently, there is no objective, single source of information on enterprise GIS that provides a potential client with objective evaluations of systems components, such as hardware and software configurations, management methods, and costs.
In Jamaica, information on enterprise GIS is being provided largely by vendors. Until recently, GIS applications were supported by bilateral international donors; however, the perception of donors that use of GIS did not extend beyond the scope of the immediate project reduced the donor's funding of GIS components for new projects. This further limited the government's resources for GIS development.
In HCMC, familiarization was based on UN advisor and consultant presentations, seminars, study tours, marketing presentations, and site visits. Over a 12-month period, it became clear that the methods developed by the Centre for GIS in Qatar most closely fit the needs of the City. However, as in any large information system's environment, modifications to meet specific local conditions were required.
Prototyping
Because of variability in physical and urban environments that are surveyed and inventoried for an enterprise GIS, along with the lack of objective information on existing systems, prototyping is an essential first step in implementing an enterprise GIS. Prototyping is needed to define the base map scale (resolution) and the data structure for the GIS, i.e., layers, features and tables that constitute the system's database. In Qatar, the town of Al Khor was used to prototype the system.
Jamaica has never undertaken prototyping for a national GIS.
In HCMC, its GIS prototype was initially a .25 sq. km. area (since extended to .5 sq. km.) with an additional area identified to support another UNDP-sponsored urban management project.
Neither in Qatar nor in HCMC could the system's data structure be defined in the abstract or transferred from another urban area.
Standardization
The key to using an enterprise GIS to address numerous and different urban GIS applications is the preparation of standards which are applied to all of the data sets and applications that constitute the system. There are four areas, identified by the Qatar model, where standards must be developed and applied system-wide: 1) Spatial; 2) Data; 3) Communications (Network); and, 4) Applications.
Figure 3 illustrates how the four sets of standards used in the Qatar model define an enterprise GIS.
Figure 3: Qatar Model Standards
Spatial Standards
The primary element of spatial standards is the coordinate system used to describe the location of objects in the GIS. The coordinate system incorporates the geodesy that underlies the system and is extremely important in establishing basic properties of the surveys used to collect location data for use in the GIS. Many other components of the spatial structure, such as scale, resolution and error, can be modified from application to application if a common coordinate system is maintained.
Selection of a coordinate system depends on the availability of pre-established national or international standards. Generally, where national map standards exist, they should form the basis of the coordinate system for the GIS, even though the GIS may be intended for use in only a single urban area.
Next to selection of the coordinate system, establishing the minimum resolution of objects and their positional accuracy are important in defining an enterprise GIS. In general, the finer the resolution of the system, i.e., the greater the detail, the more potential applications can be supported. Concomitantly, development costs as well as the time to conduct detailed surveys and inventories are increased. If an enterprise GIS spatial data base is intended to support a wide range of potential urban applications, the resolution of the system must be fine enough to allow presentation of large-scale components in the urban environment. It is always possible to empirically generalize spatial data to smaller scale, but it is not possible to increase the resolution of the spatial data once it has been inventoried, surveyed and stored on the system.
Currently, no spatial standards exist for GIS development in Jamaica. Of the twelve projects that the consultant identified, five of them use different coordinate systems, including georeferencing (latitude/longitude), universal transverse mercator, Jamaica National Survey Standard, and local origin metric and imperial grids.
For HCMC, the current project is using the National Survey grid, which is metric and standardized for the entire country. In normal cartographic terms, the base mapping standards that are currently in use with enterprise GIS in Qatar, HCMC and Bangkok are similar to map accuracy standards established for the 1:500/1:1000 topographic map series.
Data Standards
Data standards, documented in a data dictionary, define how objects will be located and described within the GIS. The data topology employed in the Qatar model establishes topological layers (points, lines and areas) which are named as features, i.e., real objects with a location. Attributes of features are then described in tables. Layers, features and tables are defined in and comprise a data dictionary. Using inputs from participating agencies, the data dictionary is developed to incorporate various data requirements of those agencies in a standard format. This standard format quickly identifies redundancies in data requirements and assists in reducing duplicative effort in the survey and inventory of data for the GIS. For Qatar, agency data dictionaries are developed by the GIS coordinators within the agencies and are reviewed by CGIS, where interagency coordination occurs. If redundancies are present that cannot be resolved between CGIS and the GIS coordinators, the GIS Steering Committee determines how the data elements are to be managed, i.e., ownership, use rights, etc.
In Jamaica, the Land Information Council has not established data standards, and each of the current GIS projects conducts its own documentation. Most of this documentation is very limited and is maintained only by word of mouth. The lack of current documentation as well as national standards will make interagency use of GIS data extremely difficult.
To date, the HCMC project has attempted to compile a data dictionary prior to incorporating survey and inventory data into the system. Using data dictionary standards similar to Qatar's, the HCMC project prepares the data dictionary in a working committee consisting of members from all of the agencies. This allows immediate resolution of problems of redundancy, nomenclature and descriptions. For example, during work on the prototype areas, it even was possible to keep the data dictionary current with databases that were being installed on the system.
Network Standards
Because enterprise GIS involves multiple government agencies, it assumes that computers are located at various facilities and that those computers are networked. The network usually is a two-tiered, local-area network (LAN) and wide-area network (WAN). Due to the large amounts of data associated with GIS activities, those networks require high data transmission rate capabilities. Such a network already has been established in Qatar to support GIS and MIS activities. The backbone of the Qatar system is a 100 mip fiber optic ring connecting all government agencies.
WAN data communication standards have yet to be developed for GIS in Jamaica and HCMC. LAN standards are determined by each project in Jamaica, and in HCMC, they were configured by the hardware vendor on installation of the current ARC/INFO system.
Application Standards
User needs assessments establish a uniform method of determining applications for agencies participating in an enterprise GIS. In Qatar, the user needs assessments were conducted for each agency based on the agency's experience with the Al Khor prototype data. Prioritization of the application within the user needs assessment determined a step-by-step path to implement GIS applications within each agency using data resources defined in the data dictionaries. Applications development in Qatar is controlled within each agency but is supported by CGIS.
In Jamaica, applications were defined in terms of specific, isolated GIS projects. The single largest determining factor for implementing a GIS application was the ability to gain funding from a multilateral or bilateral donor. This led to the fragmentation of GIS development in the government, as evidenced in the numerous, incompatible GIS projects in various agencies.
In HCMC, with prototype development and familiarization nearing completion, agency user needs assessments will be undertaken using a standard format. However, this effort will not begin until the steering committee and centre for GIS are in place.
Cooperation
Cooperation between governmental agencies is essential to effectively use enterprise GIS in public administration. The primary problem is to gain cooperation in a bureaucratic environment that has long held information to be the equivalent of power, and therefore, an asset not to be shared. In the Qatar model, the enterprise GIS becomes the vehicle through which sharing of information and interagency cooperation occur. Two factors can be identified which cause this change in bureaucratic attitude: 1) increased data availability makes data hoarding counterproductive; and, 2) improved decision making, through cooperative development of information with the GIS, leads to better overall administration, which is reflected in the performance of the governmental agencies.
In Jamaica, there has been very little operational data sharing, and discussion of interagency cooperation has usually broken down over considerations of data ownership. Ownership is important in the Jamaica environment, because the data can be sold by the governmental agency to other potential users. In reality, this selling of data has rarely occurred, as most users have opted to create their own GIS base maps.
In HCMC, the effort to bring about interagency cooperation has been focused on the use of shared hardware, software and survey data. Since none of the utility companies (which are governmental agencies) have extensive internal GIS resources, they have cooperated with other governmental agencies to develop the initial inventories and to use those inventories as a training opportunity as well as a means to gain insight into the use of GIS technology.
Base Mapping
The heart of the data resources that make up an enterprise GIS is the common base map that defines the area of operation for the GIS. Qatar uses a high resolution, large-scale base map with extremely high positional accuracy (+/- 10 cm). This base map is largely derived from digital aerial photography supported by ground survey. A common base map allows all agencies to accurately position their facilities relative to each other. Thus, the base map becomes an extremely effective tool to engender cooperation, because it focuses agency GIS use on a shared data resource, i.e., the base map.
There is no common base map used in Jamaica. Each GIS project has developed its own base map, with different coordinates, scales, accuracy, projections, etc. In many cases, this effectively inhibits data sharing. It is easier for an agency requiring data to survey or inventory the data in the field rather than to transfer it from another agency's GIS data base (which may be undocumented and of questionable reliability).
The base map for the HCMC project is prepared from field survey (using Total Stations) after new monumentation is installed and the monuments are related to the national grid. The survey concentrates on the utility corridor, which is defined as an area extending approximately 25 meters on each side of the street centerline. All visible utility components are surveyed. This includes manholes, curbs, utility poles, transformers, etc. After the survey is adjusted, it is transferred to ARC/INFO in a format that conforms to one established in the data dictionary. Based on the survey, the participating agencies then provide data tables for the features. In the future, when digital aerial photographic data are available, they will be incorporated with the surveys to provide comprehensive coverage.
Local conditions in HCMC required defining the data dictionary prior to large-scale data collection. The existence of the data dictionary made it possible to quickly organize survey data on the GIS before the utilities attached attribute tables. It is noteworthy that the HCMC innovations extend the Qatar experience of using data dictionaries for standardization and show the value of having a coherent system of data organization before data collection begins.
Data Sharing
Data sharing is the result of cooperation among governmental agencies. It is one of the most desirable outcomes of the use of enterprise GIS, in that it reduces redundancy of data collection, limits the collection of poor quality data, and assists in making cost effective the collection of government data. In the Qatar model, use of a single base map for multiple-agency GIS applications is the best example of this. All attributes related to a given geographical element in Qatar are referenced to the same coordinate geometry, i.e., the same geographical location. This is particularly helpful when working with physical infrastructure, where locational ambiguity can cause both operational and design problems for the utility. By sharing the same geographical data, the utilities reduce the problems that arise from poor location or locational error.
As well as the common spatial data represented by the base map maintained by CGIS, the enterprise GIS in Qatar has created an information field in which GIS applications can be developed within an individual agency which uses shared data from another agency. For example, Planning Department applications in the Ministry of Agriculture and Urban Affairs use data from the Public Works Department Roads Division in GIS planning applications. This illustrates that the existence of the GIS causes data sharing whatever the source of the data.
In Jamaica, data sharing is not common, and it has been hampered by the widely-held belief that GIS base mapping data are a marketable commodity.
In HCMC, common surveying and base mapping of the utility corridors have provided the utilities with an opportunity to inventory their facilities to a common base. This is especially important in a city such as HCMC, where the utilities share the use of certain elements, such as poles, manholes, etc. Without common base mapping, it would be extremely difficult to determine if, for example, multiple poles existed within a very short distance of each other, or if survey discrepancies were created because three utilities surveyed differently the same pole.
Applications
The culmination of these enterprise GIS implementation steps is the development of GIS applications which provide end users with accurate and timely assessments of the spatial structure of a geographic entity.
The Qatar model has proven effective both as a vehicle for the development of intra- as well as interagency GIS applications. This is especially true in developing applications for such governmental agencies as planning and finance departments, which use large amounts of data but normally do not collect all of the data required, relying heavily on other agencies as data sources. When applications are developed based on shared databases, there is less concern that one agency's data will not conform to that of another. Further, conflicting assessments or policies are less likely to result.
In Qatar, use of a common base map and shared databases facilitates intra- and interagency applications of GIS. This common digital geography presents a more holistic and continuous view of the country than otherwise would be achieved by multiple agency-based GIS applications, each of which may view the actual national environment from different base maps and data sets.
In Jamaica, all applications have been developed on an agency-by-agency project basis. Data are collected for each specific application and are particular to that application. This approach has inhibited the use of GIS in higher levels of government decision and policy making, because information from the various GIS cannot be easily combined and generalized.
In HCMC, the applications development stage has not yet begun. It is currently envisioned that applications will use a common base map and shared databases.
Conclusions
Of the eight procedural steps in the Qatar model, five of the steps have been successfully transferred for use in HCMC: organization, familiarization, prototyping, standardization, and base mapping. The other three steps, cooperation, data sharing, and applications, will be tested in the HCMC environment as enterprise GIS development continues. Use of the Qatar model has provided HCMC with a road map for GIS development. It would seem that in other cases where only limited GIS development has occurred, the same approach could be followed.
In Jamaica, where a large number of GIS projects have been undertaken over a long period of time, it is more difficult to follow procedural steps, such as those reviewed in this paper. It is clear that interagency enterprise GIS may be very difficult to establish in environments where individual agencies have entrenched GIS applications of their own. Project-developed GIS also may inhibit the development of GIS applications for higher levels of government where multiple-agency information is required in decision making.
The Qatar model clearly illustrates that regardless of the applications governments intend for GIS, it is extremely important that GIS standards be established and applied government-wide. Otherwise, the ability of individual GIS applications to evolve into a government-wide enterprise GIS will be severely limited.
Sources
Sources for information on the Qatar enterprise GIS are from the author's experience in Qatar during 1994-1995 and a seminar, entitled "The Management of GIS on a City-Wide Basis," presented by Mr. Zul Jiwani, Head of CGIS, in HCMC on 6 August 1996. The author has provided GIS consulting support to the Government of Jamaica since 1987 and has been involved in the development of the HCMC GIS since its inception in late 1995.
Disclaimer
Opinions expressed in this paper are solely the author's and do not reflect those of the governments, international organizations or private firms by whom he has been retained.
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