Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources - Alhaji Yusif Sulemana

Mr Sulemana said the National Geospatial Policy, which aligns with the United Nations Integrated Geospatial Information guidelines, seeks to bring consistency to the way data is produced and shared across the public sector and private institutions.

He added that although the National Spatial Data Infrastructure is still being developed, it is expected to support openness and improve the quality of information used by government agencies.

He encouraged African governments and development partners to support training and long-term financing, warning that the continent cannot continue to rely on scattered efforts or one-off projects.

The chair of the UN-GGIM: Africa Executive Board, Mr Clinton Heimann, noted that more African countries are taking part in regional geospatial programmes. He described the progress as steady and important for Africa’s digital development.

Mr Heimann said it is important for countries to raise the visibility of local expertise, especially young people, because they are closely involved in surveying, mapping, land administration and other practical work that shapes national datasets.

“We need your stories, your lessons,” he said. “Africa is different from anywhere else. We must build the base strong and get more young faces involved.”

The Director of the African Centre for Statistics at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Mr Samuel Kobina Annim, urged African states to adopt data systems that bring together geospatial information with sources such as mobile data, citizen-generated data and administrative records.

Mr Annim said the continent cannot deal with poverty, food insecurity and social protection gaps without linking geospatial information to timely evidence.

He added that countries need to strengthen not only human capacity but the systems that support data production and use.

He called for geospatial data to be made more accessible so that researchers, policymakers and citizens can apply it to planning and public accountability.

The President of the African Space Agency Council, Dr Tidiane Ouattara, encouraged African countries to move from long discussions to practical steps.

He said the continent’s land and marine resources remain poorly monitored and are often used by outside actors because countries do not have full control over their own geospatial information.

“Geospatial intelligence gives us sovereignty, the ability to say yes or no with our own conscience,” he said. Dr Ouattara added that Africa’s population presents a wide market for geospatial services, yet only a small part of the revenue from the space economy remains on the continent.

He urged governments to treat geospatial capability as a productive area of the economy, noting that it can create value in the same way as cocoa, coffee or cotton.

He also encouraged countries to work more closely with one another and with the private sector to support national geospatial programmes.

The conference, which Ghana last hosted in 1999, brought together governments, universities, private institutions, development partners and students to discuss Africa’s use of geospatial information under the theme “Harnessing Geospatial Intelligence for Africa’s Sustainable and Resilient Future.”