Challenges and Opportunities for the Advancement of GIS Education in TANZANIA

Rapid developments in science and technology have driven utilization of Geographical Information Science (GIS) in various fields of Planning, Management, and exploitation of environmental resources and provision of social services. As information technology gains momentum, GIS uses information science infrastructure to address the problems of geography, cartography, geosciences locations and related branches of science and engineering; that is shortly referred to as Geo-informatics. Increased application of GIS calls for more demand of advanced Geo-informatics education worldwide. This study has established major challenges for the advancement of Geo-informatics education in Tanzania and any possible opportunities which can be utilized for the improvement of the same. Prominent challenges identified could be associated with lack of reliable power, internet connection, computer system and accessories and appropriate software. Other challenges were related to the nature of the school curriculum and insufficient knowledge and skills of the human resources. Opportunities identified involve available government plans for increasing power supply, increasing mobile phones networks, Tanzania ICT and education and training policy with a major aim of improving ICT education and the competency based school curriculum under implementation. But the government should further support directly or indirectly all efforts by various groups that participate in advancing Geo-informatics education in the country. Keywords: Education, Geo-informatics, Tanzania, GIS, Transfer of Technology IC

Razvoj normaliziranog indeksa tla za urbane studije upotrebom podataka daljinskih mjerenja

This paper presents two novel spectral soil area indices to identify bare soil area and distinguish it more accurately from the urban impervious surface area (ISA). This study designs these indices based on medium spatial resolution remote sensing data from Landsat 8 OLI dataset. Extracting bare soil or urban ISA is more challenging than extracting water bodies or vegetation in multispectral Remote Sensing (RS). Bare soil and the urban ISA area often were mixed because of their spectral similarity in multispectral sensors. This study proposes Normalized Soil Area Index 1 (NSAI1) and Normalized Soil Area Index 2 (NSAI2) using typical multispectral bands. Experiments show that these two indices have an overall accuracy of around 90%. The spectral similarity index (SDI) shows these two indices have higher separability between soil area and ISA than previous indices. The result shows that percentile thresholds can effectively classify bare soil areas from the background. The combined use of both indices measured the soil area of the study area over 71 km2. Most importantly, proposed soil indices can refine urban ISA measurement accuracy in spatiotemporal studies.Ovaj rad prikazuje dva nova spektralna indeksa tla kako bi se identificiralo golo tlo te kako bi se bolje razlikovalo od urbanih nepropusnih površina (ISA). Ti indeksi su definirani na temelju srednje prostorne rezolucije daljinskih podataka Landsat 8 OLI skupa podataka. U multispektralnim daljinskim mjerenjima (RS) prepoznavanje golog tla ili urbane ISA podloge je složenije od prepoznavanja vodenih tijela ili podloge s vegetacijom. Zbog sličnosti spektara dobivenih multispektralnim senzorima golo tlo i urbana ISA površina često se ne razlučuju. Ova studija predlaže dva normalizirana indeksa tla (NSAI1 i NSAI2) korištenjem tipičnih multispektralnih pojaseva. Eksperimenti pokazuju da ta dva indeksa imaju sveukupnu točnost od približno 90%. Indeks spektralne sličnosti (SDI) pokazuje da ta dva indeksa razlikuju golo tlo od urbane ISA podloge bolje nego dosadašnji indeksi. Rezultati pokazuju da percentilni pragovi mogu efikasno razlučiti površine s golim tlom od pozadine. Kombiniranom upotrebom oba indeksa izmjerena je površina tla veća od 71 km2. Najznačajniji rezultat je taj da predloženi indeksi tla mogu poboljšati točnost mjerenja urbanih ISA u u prostorno-vremenskim studijama

On the development of climate data visualization tool for interpretation of empirical results from climate model : does it add value to different stakeholders?

Tools for visualization of climate data have been developed specifically for scientists and professionals in climatology but more recently, there is need for interpretation of results from simulated and modeled climate data useful for different stakeholders. Various experts (climate scientist, water resources engineer, agricultural engineer, hydrologist, gender specialist, economics experts and computer scientist) worked together in understanding and solving problems pertaining to climate, crop, and economic modeling. In this paper, we present a climate data visualization tool developed to allow interactive display of maps as per multi-dimensional data sets from multiple parameters of climate data as per needs of different stakeholders

Assessing the impacts of climate variability and change on agricultural systems in Eastern Africa while enhancing the region’s capacity to undertake integrated assessment of vulnerabilities to future changes in climate - Tanzania

Agriculture is the most important economic sector in Tanzania as it provides the main source of food and employment among others (URT, 2012). More than 80% of population in Tanzania depends on climate sensitive rain fed agriculture as source of livelihood. However, agriculture is characterized by high production risks due to its dependence on unpredictable and highly variable weather, low returns on investment resulting among others from low productivity, rudimentary technology and inefficient marketing system (URT, 2012). Water scarcity and other natural resource constraints will make it even harder to intensify agricultural production (Meridian Institute, 2013). As population increases and climate changes, agricultural productivity improvement demands new approaches which, apart from addressing these challenges, should also aim at protecting both the environment and functioning of ecosystem while enhancing the capabilities of communities to attaining sustainable development. It is in this light under which the Agricultural Model inter-comparison and Improvement Project (AgMIP) was formulated. AgMIP proposes methods and tools that allow integrated assessment of climate change impact by linking climate, crop, and economic modelling (Rosenzweig et al., 2013). Wami River sub-Basin in Tanzania is one of the AgMIP case study sites. Therefore, this study presents the results of the AgMIP integrated climate change impact assessment for Wami River sub-Basin. The objectives for Tanzanian component are as follows:  To generate and corroborate climate data for baseline and future scenarios in the Wami sub-basin; To calibrate and validate crop models and simulate crop growth and development for baseline and future climate (mid-century and end-century) for identified livelihood zones;  To determine the impacts of changes in productivity of several enterprises on income and food security.AgMI

Urban growth dynamics and expansion forms in 11 Tanzanian cities from 1990 to 2020

With rapid urban expansion across Tanzania, there is a need to institute steps to address factors and forms as well as impacts and challenges associated with the observed trend. This study’s aim is to use spatial urban landscape indices to analyze the spatial changes in urban forms, patterns, and rates across 11 urban centers in Tanzania over a 30-year study period (1990–2020). During the past three decades, urban lands of 11 cities and town in Tanzania have grown by a total of 480 km2. Leapfrog growth was found as the most dominant form of urban expansion in Tanzania while Dodoma, the capital city of Tanzania, had the highest rate of urban expansion when compared to all other individual cities. The most robust and significant interaction of the AWMLEI and MLEI was found in Kigoma, Arusha, Mtwara, Mafinga, and Tunduma cities. In contrast, Mbeya agricultural city, Arusha the tourist city, Tabora, and Geita Lake zone areas did show their own peculiarities revealing an interesting spatial temporal variation in rate and form of expansion. The outcome of this study reveals that the influence and management of economic and socio-cultural opportunities will be an effective tool for the determination of the rapidly expanding cities and towns of Tanzania

A Geospatial Approach to Sustainable Urban Planning: Lessons for Morogoro Municipal Council, Tanzania

Sustainable urban planning is essential in mediating the natural and built environments globally, yet, there is little progress as regards its attainment in developing countries. Rapid and unplanned urbanization continue to threaten the sustainability of many cities in Africa. By selecting Morogoro Municipal Council (MMC) in Tanzania as an example, this study applied well-known remote sensing techniques to understand the dynamics of urban growth and the implications for sustainable urban planning. The study analyzes spatio-temporal characteristics for eighteen years (2000–2018) based on urban land density using gradient and grid-based analysis to further examine land use and urban land density nexus. The results indicate declining urban land densities with distance to the city center, indicating a less compact and fragmented development at the urban fringes; and northward development with limited development to the south of MCC. The knowledge and understanding of the patterns of spatio-temporal conditions, land use planning, and management interventions in MMC are necessary for addressing the inadequacies associated with rapid urbanization within the study area. On this basis, we propose a shift from the modernist to the communicative planning strategy that strongly integrates the urban social, economic, and environmental imperatives, while being adaptable to evolving realities. This plan should also aim to curtail urban sprawl and create a viable city system and economically prosperous city structure for MMC

Pattern analysis of substandard and inadequate distribution of educational resources in urban–rural areas of Abbottabad, Pakistan

Despite an extensive system of public schools, Abbottabad, Pakistan has a chronically low literacy rate. A factor contributing to these low literacy rates might be a spatial mismatch between public schools and dense settlements in fast-growing urban and semi-urban areas of this municipal region. To test this proposition, the locations of 153 public schools were collected using hand-held GPS devices to create a geo-database, and a road network was created from the open street map and Google imagery. Nearest neighbor, K-function, Spearman’s Rho, and directional analyses were applied to this data to overcome the limitations of sparse geospatial data. A point pattern analysis shows that more than 50% of secondary schools were clustered south of the city while most of the built-up area was in the north. Localizing Geospatial data, spatial restructuring, and reorganization of schools in the study area would support rational planning and enhance student access to school facilities

A combination of remote sensing and social media data for assessing urban sprawl in morogoro, Tanzania

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Geospatial Distribution and Accessibility of Primary and Secondary Schools: A case of Abbottabad City, Pakistan

Quality education in isolated areas is a major issue in developing countries like Pakistan, as access to formal education is linked to improved life prospects for rural students. Among the factors for education, accessibility is school availability within a minimum spatial distance. The spatial distribution of schools is generally uneven in most of the cities of Northern Pakistan, thus limiting access to formal education at the primary and secondary level. This paper analyzes the spatial distribution of the primary and secondary schools found in the hilly terrain of Abbottabad city. Results show an uneven scattered pattern of schools and decreasing accessibility with longer travel times, at higher costs. Cost-weighted distance showed that this spatial distribution extends the travel distance by more than 5km for secondary school students living in the city. However, spatial restructuring and reorganization of schools in the study area would enhance student access to school facilities

A Geospatial Approach to Sustainable Urban Planning: Lessons for Morogoro Municipal Council, Tanzania

Sustainable urban planning is essential in mediating the natural and built environments globally, yet, there is little progress as regards its attainment in developing countries. Rapid and unplanned urbanization continue to threaten the sustainability of many cities in Africa. By selecting Morogoro Municipal Council (MMC) in Tanzania as an example, this study applied well-known remote sensing techniques to understand the dynamics of urban growth and the implications for sustainable urban planning. The study analyzes spatio-temporal characteristics for eighteen years (2000–2018) based on urban land density using gradient and grid-based analysis to further examine land use and urban land density nexus. The results indicate declining urban land densities with distance to the city center, indicating a less compact and fragmented development at the urban fringes; and northward development with limited development to the south of MCC. The knowledge and understanding of the patterns of spatio-temporal conditions, land use planning, and management interventions in MMC are necessary for addressing the inadequacies associated with rapid urbanization within the study area. On this basis, we propose a shift from the modernist to the communicative planning strategy that strongly integrates the urban social, economic, and environmental imperatives, while being adaptable to evolving realities. This plan should also aim to curtail urban sprawl and create a viable city system and economically prosperous city structure for MMC