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Regional News of Friday, 24 May 2013

Source: GNA

Ghana to use special satellite in property addressing

The street naming and property addressing system gets a major boost as Intelligent Addressing (IA) United Kingdom is ready to set-out a special satellite to capture data for the house numbering project.

In an interview with Ghana News Agency in Accra on Thursday, Dr Emmanuel Boakye-Danquah, IA Consultant and Project Director, explained that the adaptations of deep scan technology allow for smaller, short range variants designed to provide limited scan capability.

He said the Special Satellite is also equipped with a camera, sensor and backup date with the ability to cloak targets entering planetary bombardment range in view of the unplanned nature of most towns and cities in the country.

Dr Boakye-Danquah explained that, in addition to the aerial satellite, a special van equipped with similar technology would also move through the communities, to aid the aerial data capturing to ensure that each house gets unique identification number.

Mr Tony Black IA Operations Director noted that with the satellite each building is captured based on Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) and the Unique Street Reference Number (USRN).

He said Ghana stands to benefit tremendously from the technology of the property addressing system as it would improve the quality of location information relating to the delivery of services and protection of life and property.

He said IA would establish a spatial information management through National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG) and the National Street Gazetteer (NSG).

He said both the NLPG and NSG would create a new standard of currency and completeness for location data as the definitive list of addresses in the country and that, the NLPG is arguably the most successful initiative of its kind and size in the world and has won European recognition for its implementation.

Mr Black said Ghana stands to benefit from Intelligent Addressing's consultants who were instrumental in the development of the national address gazetteer for England and Wales, which is now managed by a public sector partnership, GeoPlace.

President John Dramani Mahama in March this year directed the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development at the launch of the National Urban Policy Framework and Action Plan to implement the street naming within 18 months.

President Mahama, then Vice President, in August 2012, also launched the National Policy document and operational guidelines on street naming and property addressing system for Ghana.

The Document was designed by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development in collaboration with the German International Cooperation, United States Agency for International Development, World Bank, European Union among other partners.

It will among other things provide Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies with the policy framework of implementing the street naming and property addressing system, help improve the quality of life in communities and business environment.

The street naming and property addressing system would also facilitate the delivery of services especially mail delivery and location for disasters such as fire outbreaks and flooding.

Intelligent Addressing is a United Kingdom based information management specialist and data provider, focusing on land and property data, particularly addresses.

It creates synergy and works in partnership with local government in the development of the NLPG, manages the national datasets for local government; the NLPG and the NSG.