H.E. Mohammed Ahmed Al Bawardi, Secretary General of Abu Dhabi Executive Council has confirmed that the Spatial Data Initiative (AD-SDI) launched in July 2007 has succeeded in achieving the desired objectives of facilitating geospatial data sharing between government entities and other concerned entities, providing coordinated access to current high quality geographical information, and advising on spatially-enabled e-Government services for Abu Dhabi Government customers be they citizens or businesses.
The AD-SDI initiative is a key pillar of the broader Abu Dhabi Government Services Modernization program being implemented under the wise council and direction of His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Through its realisation location-aware customer-centric government services can be facilitated in the Abu Dhabi e-Government drive.
Commenting on Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Centre (ADSIC) receiving a worldwide recognition award from global Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology leader ESRI in San Diego this past week, H.E. Al Bawardi said “The coordination efforts of this initiative have contributed to the proactive, comprehensive and informed planning and decision-making process, as well as to the implementation of an integrated approach that is increasing the government performance efficiency and streamlining the work of 40 public and semi-public sector organizations, including concerned entities in education and academia.”
He further added: “This initiative will contribute in saving approximately 230 million Dhs in government expenditures by avoiding duplication of effort, increasing staff performance, and by providing concerned beneficiaries with accurate information that ensures effective and successful decision making.
GIS technology currently provides a variety of computer tools that are used to gather, manage, share, and accurately verify geographical data, in addition to analyze and transform it to visual images. The GIS concept means more than simply developing maps on computers; it provides an information infrastructure platform to cluster various forms or themes of geographic data together, thus supporting a standardized all-inclusive decision-making process across many business sectors and on multiple levels.
Many government entities in Abu Dhabi have invested in GIS technology and enterprise database systems to meet their own needs. Through the AD-SDI initiative, ADSIC on behalf of the Abu Dhabi Government has succeeded in establishing the framework (policies, partnerships, standards, data, procedures, technologies, and the appropriate institutional capabilities) necessary to support geographic information sharing and to optimize benefits across the Emirate. It is upon the solid foundation of the AD-SDI that spatial or geographic information will optimally serve concerned decision makers in both the public and private sectors.