Venue: Vale Ni Bose Member’s Lounge , GCC Complex, Nasese
Permanent Secretaries;
Heads of Organizations;
Forum Participants;
Ladies and Gentlemen
Bula Vinaka, and a very good morning to all of you.
It is my pleasure to be here today, to open this Quarter’s Fiji Geospatial Information Council (FGIC) Meeting.
It is indeed an exciting time for Fiji and all Fijians, as we join other nations in the use of geospatial information for our development and efficient delivery of services.
Ladies and Gentlemen
The Fijian Government has recognized the importance and capabilities of geospatial information and its technologies such as Geospatial Information Systems, use of Remote Sensing Images and Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Therefore, in support of this great initiative, Government provided a significant budget of close to $5 million over the past 3 years to the Ministry of Lands & Mineral Resources for the development of VanuaGIS, the modernization of our very own datum, the purchase of satellite images and a mapping drone. And with the development of the VanuaGIS, I believe it would continue to incorporate the platform for spatial and non-spatial information.
Ladies and Gentlemen
Geographical Information System (GIS), is an important tool in many sectors and industries which include utilities, disaster management, urban and regional planning, climate change and green growth.
Some organisations may have developed their own GIS such as Fiji Roads Authority, Water Authority of Fiji, Fiji Electricity Authority, Telecom Fiji, while others are in their planning stages.
However, I would like to reiterate that VanuaGIS was developed not only for the Ministry of Lands & Mineral Resources, but for us all as the name ‘Vanua’ indicates.
Furthermore, the VanuaGIS will serve as a repository for fundamental data which will be hosted by the Information Technology and Computing (ITC) Services, purely to display and analyze data. The process would also depict means and ways in achieving government’s goals and commitment towards;
- 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
- The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction
- SAMOA (SIDS Accelerated Modalities Of Action) Pathway
- Paris Agreement on Climate Change
Ladies and Gentlemen
I would like to remind us all that Government annually pays a substantial amount on the ArcGIS enterprise license subscription, to ensure that the VanuaGIS portal’s usability and sustainability is maintained. Moreover, that it is made Free of Charge to all government ministries, whilst a small fee is charged for statutory bodies and the private sector.
For this reason, a collaborative effort in the sharing of geospatial data by all stakeholders present in this forum, through the National Geospatial Information Strategy, is extremely important.
Therefore, I urge you all to continue providing this platform all the necessary data as you have been doing in the past, as this would greatly assist in the projects you are currently undertaking. For those organizations that have not done this, I request that you do so, as the benefits are rewarding both in the short and long run.
Ladies and Gentlemen
The Fijian Government is the custodian of an astounding collection of unique data, gathered directly and indirectly over the course of many years.
The creation of these usable, reliable, accurate, temporal, authoritative geospatial data for the benefit of the nation, is the heart of the geospatial industry. Therefore, I encourage you all the participants present here today, to actively and continuously share whatever data you may have, as this would ensure the continued sustainability of the system. And rightfully so, when there is no data, there is no system. When there is no system, there is no definite answer or feedback.
Ladies and Gentlemen
With those words, I wish you well in your discussions and deliberations, I encourage you all to actively participate throughout the day and continue to contribute to a positive progressive geospatial industry.
Vinaka Vakalevu. Thank you.