[Gvsig_english] Introduction and consultation from UN-HABITAT

[Chris Puttick]

Hi Tomas

In some ways your question is off-topic, because the answer isn't (mustn't be, bad practice, legacy *expensive* way of thinking) an application or suite of applications. You need to set and require standards for the sharing of information. So (for example only, consultancy would be required to properly understand your challenge) you would say that all GIS data should be shared as ESRI shape files (probably best to specify a version as rumour has it things might change there) with Dbase DBF files for additional data. Web services should be presented as WFS/WMS feeds and additional specialist data available in a predefined XML format and made available via HTTP(S).

Then and only then build/select applications to run on top. If you build the suite first you run a high degree of risk of building something that is unsustainable in the long run.

So, to the specifics (still example only): having set your standards you can build a web application to present/gather/collate information. gvSIG would not be useful for this as it is a desktop/mobile application rather than a web-based one; however gvSIG could easily be one of the tools used to input, modify and analyse data to be presented via the web application through a shared database layer (essentially an SDI, Spatial Data Infrastructure), both by UN-HABITAT staff and GWOPA participants and would make a sensible recommendation because it is both highly capable and free to use and distribute. The web application would be better built on something like Mapserver with OpenLayers for the interface and PostgreSQL with the PostGIS add-on to store the data.

Benefits of the approach as outlined: sustainability (easy to change applications if standards are defined for data interchange); inclusion (applications mentioned about are all free to use, but the use of standards would allow other software to be used if already owned by GWOPA participants; cost-effectiveness (all applications mentioned are not only free to use but highly effective, competitive in their field and in some cases leaders, but again existing investments could be leveraged assuming they are standards compliant).

BTW, nice project name - I just hope there are no GRUBS in my water supply...

Hope that helps!

Regards

Chris

-- 
Chris Puttick
OA Digital
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----- "Tomas Lopez" <Tomas.Lopez at unhabitat.org> wrote:

> Dear colleagues,
> gvSIG
> 
> My name is Tomas Lopez de Bufala and I work as Junior Programme
> Officer for UN-HABITAT headquarters (United Nations Progamme for Human
> Settlements) at Nairobi. I am in the Human Settlements and Finance
> Division, and specifically I belong to the team that aims to develop
> the Global Water Operators' Partnership Alliance (GWOPA,
> http://www.unhabitat.org/categories.asp?catid=568).
> 
> As introduction I want to highlight that the mission of the Global WOP
> Alliance is to promote improved performance of operators of water and
> sanitation utility systems all around the world through mechanisms for
> direct partnerships and networking (see document attached). In this
> sense the Alliance seeks to provide utility operators with a platform
> that would allow them to systematically communicate and share
> knowledge, and build their own capacity through a “learning-by-doing
> approach”. Water operators’ partnerships (WOPs) are currently being
> promoted by UN-HABITAT as a promising approach for improving the
> performance of water utilities, through systematic knowledge-sharing,
> peer-support and emulation.
> 
> Thus and in order to facilitate the achivement of this core objective,
> the GWOPA is comitted and working to develop a Geo-Referenced Utility
> Benchmarking System (GRUBS) (see document attached), because is
> through benchmarking and geo-referenced systems that will be possible
> to offer comparative, clear and useful information for:
> 
> - Understandig the performance of each utiliy relative to others
> - Facilitating the sharing of best practice information and to support
> decisions to improve performance
> 
> Is at this point that we wonder whether the gvSIG initiative could be
> helpful for the main purpose of GRUBS, understood as a GIS and
> web-based tool with a frendly-user interface for doing benchmarking
> between water and sanitation utility operators at local, national,
> regional, continental and worldwide levels, being the main expected
> outputs to:
> 
> - Understand current water and sanitation utilities performance
> variability
> - Help utilities, regulators and policy-makers to develop appropriate
> pro-poor policies and planning strategies
> - Enable to model and plan network extension to reduce pro-poor
> performance gaps
> - Help consumers to demand improved service and hold utilities
> accountable
> 
> In other words, we are trying to decide which GIS application to use
> and develop in order to fit with the GRUBS concept as it is presented
> the the PPT attached. So then we would be deeply grateful if we
> receive your advice in this sense, mostly in terms of the
> compatibility between the gvSIG possibilities and the GRUBS
> requirements.
> 
> I look forward to hearing from you.
> 
> Best regards,
> 
> 
> Tomas Lopez de Bufala
> Junior Programme Officer
> Global Water Operators' Partnerships Alliance
> UN-Habitat, Nairobi, Kenya
> Tel : +(254) 20-762 5325 - Office
> Cell: +(254)716 - 257 616- Roaming
> 
> 
> 
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> Gvsig_internacional at runas.cap.gva.es
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