11 August 2011: The African Regional Preparatory meeting on Global Geospatial Information Management (GGIM) met from 8-10 August 2011, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to establish a plan of action for African participation in GGIM initiative ahead of the High-Level Forum on GGIM to be held in Seoul, Republic of Korea, from 24-26 October 2011. The meeting culminated with the adoption of the Addis Ababa Declaration on Geospatial Information Management in Africa.

The meeting, organized under the auspices of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), met to: consider key challenges, opportunities and constraints relating to geospatial information management in Africa; develop a common approach for African contributions to GGIM; and define a broad plan of action for the future.

Delegates from across the continent, as well as leading experts in the field, adopted the Addis Ababa Declaration, which recommends that the UNECA, the African Union (AU) and countries themselves work to finalize and implement the African Action Plan on Geospatial Information Management. Delegates also agreed that the UNECA would continue coordinating the participation of African countries in the GGIM initiative through the work of the African Regional Spatial Data Infrastructure (ARSDI).

The meeting also came up with key elements towards the development of the African Action Plan on GGIM, which will include: policy and governance issues; common framework and tools; capacity building and knowledge transfer; and international coordination and cooperation in meeting global needs, including partnerships, focusing geospatial activities on Africa’s priority socioeconomic development needs, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), water, climate change and disaster management, health, food security and poverty alleviation. [UNECA Press Release] [Meeting Website]