Jasikan kicks off database project

Jasikan, May 03, GNA - The Jasikan District is to benefit from a multi-purpose database mapping and monitoring project to facilitate planning and provide information about the district's infrastructure, resources and economic viability.

The project, which is the brainchild of the Centre for Remote Censoring and Geographic Information Services, University of Ghana, Legon, is to harmonize and establish mapping and monitoring system for development activities in Ghana.

Dr Emmanuel Amamoo-Otchere, the Executive Director of the centre, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that the one-stop database would include information on first and second cycle schools, health facilities and water and sanitation.

It will also include feeder roads, community based development projects, population and improved data on 2000 population census and all its ramification and social facilities.

He said the project would address the inadequacies in district structures and its sub-district administrative boundaries, area councils and electoral area boundaries and would be fed into the national database for development and research purposes.

Dr Amammoo-Otchere said a Global Positioning System (GPS), which is a modern ICT state- of-the-art device for guide mapping from satellite technology, was being employed to undertake the project.

He said practical ways of partnership among district authorities, resource persons and the use of local knowledge would be tapped and capacity build on how to use the GPS to enable them continue the mapping process.

The Executive Director said development partners and donors usually did not have adequate information on projects they funded. He said the mapping project, when completed, would address all anomalous distribution patterns and assist the district assemblies to embark on adequate planning and make projections into development patterns.

Dr Amamoo-Otchere said the two-year project would be completed next year when all districts would have benefited from it.