PARA LA COSTA SALVADOREÑA

Botswana does not have a legal framework that specifically addresses standard procedures for collecting, handling and disseminating geospatial data (Ryden, 2006). Nonetheless, it has Botswana Surveying and Mapping Standards (BSMS) which contain documented agreements of technical specifications, rules, guidelines, and quality assurance measures for the collection, manipulation and dissemination of geospatial datasets. Standards can help organizations utilize modern land information systems that involve Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as the driving forces for geospatial information management and maintenance (ASPRS, 2014). BSMS endorse the National Standards for Spatial Data Accuracy (NSSDA) procedure, published by the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) in 1998 (Ryden, 2006).

The NSSDA procedures informed the development of a Specification for Data Acquisition for Cadastral and Topographic Base Map for Village Mapping document in 2006 by the government to guide geospatial data collection activities at Department of Surveys and Mapping (DSM) and Land Boards (Ryden, 2006). The specification provides guidelines for large-scale mapping activities, geospatial data acquisition, handling and dissemination at the village level. Moreover, they provide an acceptance criterion that geospatial data must conform to, such that it can be considered acceptable for a specific use. For example, it specifies that cadastral base maps, land use and land cover features (like grassland, woodland and built-up areas) should be mapped from an orthophoto at a scale of 1:5000. This is the scale of the existing

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orthophoto used by the country acquired in 2011 with a spatial resolution of 25 cm. Orthophotos for village mapping are acquired every five years (Mooketsi and Leonard, 2013). According to GeoManual (2014), an acceptable accuracy level for 2-dimensional onscreen digitizing activities from an orthophoto ranges from 1m to 4m, at a scale of 1:5000, to capture points, lines and polygons.

Currently, this orthophoto is used by Land Boards, government departments and private agencies for village mapping activities to produce cadastral and topographic maps. These mapping activities, done with on-screen digitizing method have an accuracy threshold of 40- 100cm for digital orthophotos (GeoManual, 2014). The threshold is consistent with the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) accuracy standards for digital geospatial data (ASPRS, 2014). Table 2-1 shows horizontal accuracies for digital planimetric data and their associated thresholds for the current orthophoto in use as outlined by BSMS. According to the GeoManual (2014), the horizontal accuracy of contributed land parcels is computed by comparing planimetric coordinates of their well-defined points with coordinates from an independent source of higher accuracy.

Table 2-1. Horizontal Accuracy/Quality for Planimetric Data (1:5000) (GeoManual, 2014).

Map Scale Approximate Source Imagery Ground Sample Distance (GSD) Horizontal Data Accuracy Class RMSEx or RMSEy (cm) RMSEr (cm) Horizontal Accuracy at the 95% Confidence Level (cm) I 62.5 88.4 153.0 1:5000 40-100 cm II 125.0 176.8 306.0 III 187.5 265.2 458.9

The horizontal accuracy thresholds (Classes I, II, III) provide map accuracy class ranges that contributed datasets can fall into based on the extent of their deviation from ground truth. The classes represent the following categories: Class I products represent high accuracy mapping- grade geospatial data; Class II products characterise standard grade mapping geospatial data; while Class III products can be used for lower accuracy and less user-demanding mapping applications. These classes inform the potential uses of contributed datasets in official systems.

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Therefore, all the three classes may be considered for use in official systems based on their potential application areas as outlined in Table 2-2.

Even though these standards are primarily intended for planimetric data compiled from stereophotogrammetry, they are equally relevant to planimetric maps produced from digital orthophotos (ASPRS, 2014). The standards were developed such that accuracy of geospatial data could be reported at the 95% confidence interval as a function of the Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) values of X, Y, and Z at ground scale (ASPRS, 2014). For a horizontal accuracy reporting of the location of a point, this means that if there is a radius of uncertainty, the true or theoretical position of the point will fall within the circle 95% of the time. Table 2-2 shows potential uses of datasets digitized from the 1:5000 scale orthophoto based on the BSMS standards:

Table 2-2. Potential uses of digitized datasets according to BSMS standard (GeoManual, 2014). Horizontal Data

Accuracy Class

Potential uses of digitized datasets in land administration

I

• policy formulations • development planning

• decision making at the village level • land registration

• cadastral mapping of sparsely populated areas

II

• standard mapping and GIS work • general boundary surveys • land registration

• reporting of illegal activities

• land rights recording of monumental sites • water points location determination

III

• reporting of illegal activities

• land rights recording of monumental sites • water points location determination

One aspect of addressing the importance and utilization of spatial standards in cadastral and mapping systems lies in increasing the level of understanding of their relevance and significance to both consumers and producers (ESRI, 2003). Therefore, DSM continues to

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interact with relevant stakeholders to ensure that the standards adopted in the country are appropriate and serve the needs of users.

2.7.1 Institutional arrangements for geospatial data handling at Land Boards

DSM supplies Land Boards with fundamental geospatial datasets to update them with current land information of their jurisdiction. It has licensing and data sharing agreements between its stakeholders, which are legally binding documents that prevent misuse and abuse of the datasets. Some of the mapping and surveying activities that exist in Land Boards include:

1. Production of high accuracy cadastral maps for title deed surveys, and lower accuracy land parcel maps for general mapping activities like land use and land cover maps, 2. Topographic mapping of the environment for base map production,

3. On-screen digitizing from orthophotos to produce vector data to be used in various activities like utility mapping, road constructions, land information management and the production of locality sketches for leasehold certificates.

Mapping activities through on-screen digitizing at Land Boards give room for VGI utilization in official systems provided there are well-defined quality and credibility measures to establish the accuracy and reliability of contributed datasets. DSM as a sole geospatial data custodian, encourages a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement for the development, updating, management and maintenance of fundamental geospatial datasets, as a shared resource between the public and private organizations (GeoManual, 2014). Therefore, it is necessary to investigate participatory, inclusive and affordable initiatives that can facilitate effective PPPs for updating and production of land information capable of adding value to official systems.

2.7.2 Policies on public participation in land administration

The Town and Country Planning Act and the Tribal Land Act have legal provisions that recognize public participation in land related activities. The provisions state that planning at the village level requires public input and that land allocations should be publicly displayed for 21 days at the kgotla for transparency, public scrutiny, appeal and adjudication purposes. Furthermore, the Acts have clauses which stress that the public and other stakeholders should be engaged in the design of development plans which inform village expansion efforts over a 20-year period. According to Khama and Seleka (2017), the land policy of 2015 recognises cultural norms and institutions, and values the importance of stakeholder participation. It has set out a strategy in which the public can be engaged in land related issues, which include: a)

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reviving village development committees to foster stakeholder participation, b) introducing communication and change management strategies headed by the Ministry of Lands and Housing to foster stakeholder participation, and c) establishing committees to conduct research on effective means of engaging the public in land related issues to improve the administration and management of land.

Currently, public participatory activities only take part through kgotla meetings, council meetings, public displays of cadastral layouts and maps requesting their input. Nonetheless, Nkwae (2006) argues that public officers at times confuse consultations with informing the public, thus the meetings end up as information sources, rather than consultative platforms for gathering public input and opinions.

This section presented a review of the cadastral system of Botswana as an engine for LAS in rural areas, which is administered by District Land Boards. A review of previous land reforms was conducted and it provided an understanding that throughout the reforms, customary land was the most challenging, yet comprising the most land mass and larger population. To better administer land, the country established land information systems to facilitate an effective and efficient LAS of customary land. The first system was TLIMS in 2002, which managed to reduce paper-based problems of filing and reconciliation of land records. However, its challenges eclipsed its successes which led to its eventual abandonment. Therefore in 2009, LAPCAS was introduced as the answer to TLIMS problems: to improve land administration and build the capacity of Land Boards to better manage and administer land in their jurisdictions. The project is ongoing and intends to harmonise various land laws, possibly merging it into one act to improve land delivery and administration services.

The government of Botswana has established laws and policies to guide the administration and governance of all land tenure systems. The main land law of customary tenure is the Tribal Land Act which regulates Land Board structures and procedures. Recently a new Land Policy (Botswana Land Policy of 2015) was formulated to facilitate LAPCAS procedures and implementations, to promote access, equity, efficiency, tenure security, active participation and transparency in land administration and management. Land Boards use less accurate handheld GPS devices to collect land parcel boundaries, which subsequently is used to prepare official Lease documents. This gives room for external data consideration in official systems provided there are well-defined quality and reliability measures of the contributed datasets to improve trust and confidence of potential users.

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