Background

Spatial data are created by several agencies as per their needs. Between 1999- 2002 Survey Department created the digital topographic database from its base-maps. Development of a multi-resolution geodatabse is under progress. In year 2002, His Majesty's Government realized the importance of supporting in the creation of an infrastructure to facilitate the sharing of geographical information within the country. While the infrastructure will be designed in a way that it evolves eventually to serve the purpose of national geographical information infrastructure (NGII), the scope of the current activities is to pilot such an infrastructure with topographic and census data at the first priority. Such data will be made available and shared with all the users. On the second stage, the ministry of Local Development, the ministry of Education, the ministry of Health, the ministry of Agriculture and the ministry of Population and Environment will be incorporated on the infrastructure. Hence the scope of the project is to have seven nodes to hook on the infrastructure where the Department of Survey and the Central Bureau of Statistics will be considered to be the most important nodes. During this period, more agencies are expected to prepare to participate in this infrastructure, which will gradually cover all the agencies within the country that either produce or use the geographical information. The concept of NGII once fully materialized will be an enabling platform for all sorts of geographical information handlings at the national level, thereby facilitating the operationalisation of a National Geographical Information System (NGIS) in Nepal. The main benefit of NGII will be the technological, managerial, organisational, economic and personnel mechanism to facilitate the sharing, access to and responsible use of geographical and geo-related data. In the present context, the primary focus will be given to analyse and disseminate the Census 2001 added spatial dimensions, which is a new concept in Nepal. This will create awareness and the mechanism for data usage within other selected user organizations.

The programme established in 2002, has currently the support from the European Commission.