Data Forum: Government asked to adopt Satellite technology for data collection

This was said by Mr. Kiringai Kamau, Agribusiness and Private Sector Advisor, Agricultural Transformation Initiative during the just concluded National Forum on Harnessing the Data Revolution on Sustainable Development, held in Nairobi.

“The Government should now adopt sensor and satellite technology to collect real time data across the nation to help address some issues we face as a nation, since data collected through the satellites is more accurate and Geo Preference. The Government should as well adopt Smartphone technology due to its GPS technology,” he said

He also added, “Organisations like ICRAF have had success stories through the data collected by orbiting satellites that help measure electromagnetic radiation reflected from farmland and help farmers address some issues they face in their farms.”

The Forum also highlighted some challenges faced through Data Collection which included data accuracy due to lack of standard fundamental datasets and as well called on the Government to put in place a fundamental data infrastructures.

However, the forum complimented the Government on its Open Data initiative which is a portal which makes Government developmental, demographic, and statistical and expenditure data available in a useful digital format for researchers, policymakers, ICT developers and the general public.

The Data Forum was held on 28th and 29th August 2015 with the aim of harnessing the data revolution for sustainable development. The forum also acted as a marker to catalyse the amplification of the data revolution process in Kenya.

The National Forum convened stakeholders from various data communities as envisioned in the proposed African Data Consensus. These data communities included stakeholders from government, private sector, academia, civil society, local communities and development partners who engaged on the informational aspects of development decision-making.