Land and geospatial information systems: A cornerstone to improve resilience
Organizer: The World Bank
| When disasters displace people and they are forced to leave their homes behind, land records can offer critical protection of their property rights. This is crucial, since land and homes are usually the main assets that people have and being able to return to homes—and for that matter, farms and businesses—is essential for recovery. Receiving compensation for what has been lost enables people to start again and rebuild; however, without land records, there is no inventory of what has been lost. Similarly, geospatial information is essential. Without this, even the most basic rebuilding post-disaster is impossible. Restoring road networks, transportation, water supplies, and sewage systems requires detailed data about topography, elevation, soil stability, and subsurface structures. At its most basic, if those trying to undertake relief work lack maps of the areas they are working in, rescue efforts will be compromised, and the provision of emergency aid made difficult. Land and geospatial information is extremely valuable for resilience but to produce it and effectively use it, right systems need to be in place: a Land Administration System that provides current, reliable, and complete land tenure, land valuation, land use, and land development information, and a sustainable National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI)—that provides comprehensive and authoritative geospatial information. Moreover, Land and geospatial systems are of no use in disasters unless the systems themselves are resilient so that data and access to data are not lost in a disaster event. This session will present the report “Solid Ground: Increasing Community Resilience through Improved Land Administration and Geospatial Information Systems” and a moderated panel discussion interviewing practitioners and experts about their experiences using Land and geospatial information in the context of resilience. |
Speakers:
Abbas Rajabifard, Director of the Centre for Disaster Management and Public Safety, and Director of Smart and Sustainable Development, The University of Melbourne, Australia
Rosamond Bing, Chief Executive Officer – Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources of Tonga
Keith Bell, Senior Technical Specialist
Colleen Butcher-Gollach, International Lead Technical Advisor
Mika-Petteri Torhonen, Lead Land Administration Specialist