Concept of SDI (Spatial Data Infrastructure)

A Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI), also called geospatial data

infrastructure, is a data infrastructure implementing a framework
of geographic data, metadata, users and tools that are interactively
connected in order to use spatial data in an efficient and flexible way.
Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) may be understood as the
technology, policies, standards, human resources, and related
activities necessary to acquire, process, use, maintain, and preserve
spatial data as well as to promote geospatial data sharing throughout
the Federal, Provincial, local governments, and the private sector in
order to use spatial data in an efficient and flexible way.
The SDI ensures that spatial data from multiple sources is available
and easily integrated to improve the understanding of the physical
and cultural world and facilitates seamless data development,
information sharing, and collaborative decision making across
multiple sectors of the economy.
With SDI at place, we can check the duplication of efforts among
data producers, maintain data quality and reduce the cost of data.
This, eventually, will help in making geographic data more accessible
to the public and ensures the benefits of using available data.
 Importance of SDI

• To minimize unnecessary duplication of effort for data capture

• To promote data sharing through harmonization and

standardization

• To avoid unnecessary geo spatial data duplication

• To maximize the benefit of GI sharing

• To save time, effort, and money in geo spatial data access, and
facilitate users in determining how fit the geo spatial data are for
their applications.
Components of SDI
Clearing House
➔ A key feature of a national SDI is the national spatial data
clearinghouse, which can be defined as an electronic facility for
searching, viewing, transferring, ordering, advertising and/or
disseminating spatial data from numerous sources via the Internet.
➔ The fundamental goal of clearing house is to provide access to
digital spatial data and related online services for data access,
visualization or order.
➔ It allows individual agencies or geographically defined
communities to promote their available digital spatial data.
➔ The facility provides complementary services and improves the
exchange and sharing of spatial data between suppliers and users.
➔ The chief advantage for users is that they do not have to learn a
hundred different search interfaces created separately by different
organizations.
➔ Instead, a search request can be directed to several different data
providers at once.
➔ Clearinghouses provide a very powerful and cheap system to
advertise data to the community/users through the use of Internet.
 Characteristics of Clearing House

• number of suppliers • registration-only access

• number of web references • most recently produced
• languages used dataset

• frequency of web updates • decentralized network

architecture
• level of (meta)data
accessibility • availability of view services

• number of dataset • use of maps for searching

• metadata-standard applied
Metadata
➔ In its simplest form, metadata is data about data, but it isn't the
data itself.
➔ It provides information about the data under consideration. In
other words, metadata is as a short explanation or summary of
what the data is about.
➔ Metadata for a geospatial data might include a collection of
information like the geographical location, data layer name, file
size, date of creation, owner, spatial reference system, scale,
accuracy statement, cost, copyright information and so forth.
 ➔ In essence, metadata answers what, who, how, when and where
about every facet of the data that are being documented for
example:
What geographic data set? –title and description of the data set
Who collected it? –data set originator or creator and supplier
How was it collected? –how to obtain more information on the data
set, how to order, available formats and access constraints
When was it created? –date of creation and update cycle if any.
Where does the data reside? –the geographical extent of data set
based on coordinates.
There are three main types of metadata:
Descriptive metadata: describes a resource for purposes such as
discovery and identification. It can include elements such as title,
abstract, author, and keywords.
Structural metadata: indicates how compound objects are put
together, for example, how pages are ordered to form chapters.
Administrative metadata: provides information to help manage a
resource, such as when and how it was created, file type and other
technical information, and who can access it.
Framework
➔ One of the main objectives of NSDI is to stop duplication of data,
create cost effective data and promote collaborative efforts among the
data producers, public and private users.
➔ Generally, base map information is produced by the National
Mapping Agency (Survey Department in Nepãl). Other institutions,
departments should focus on producing specialized data based on the
base map information.
➔ In the context of SDI, framework may be thought of as a
collaborative initiative to develop geographic datasets that are
compatible based upon spatial location and content.
➔ Availability of framework data ensures trustworthy data and
creates positive environment to enable participants to integrate,
maintain and distribute framework data freely and easily as possible.
➔ The basic data needed by the GIS users should be produced and
provided by National Mapping Agency and other concerned
departments like Cadastral Department (Cadastral Survey Division),
Department of Roads, and so forth.
➔ One of the ultimate goals of the framework data is to provide
uniformity to data and data sources.
➔ Development of framework will facilitate production and use of
geographic data, reduce overall operating costs for geographic data
and improve service and decision-making process.
➔ Following can be considered as the seven framework data themes
 Cadastral Information
 Digital Ortho Imagery
 Elevation
 Geodetic Control
 Government/Administrative Units
 Hydrography
 Transportation
Geospatial Data
➔ Refers to the data that has a geographic component (X, Y
coordinates) in it and represents some data information referred to
the given geographic location. The geographic component may also
be expressed as an address, city, postal code, or zip code.
➔ There are two basic types or forms of geospatial data:
Vector: This form uses points, lines, and polygons to represent spatial
features such as cities, roads, boundaries etc.
Raster: This form uses cells (pixels) to represent spatial features.
➔ Some geospatial data covering whole country, generally,
prepared by the government and made available for public use are
called framework data.
➔ All geospatial data should follow specific standards to facilitate
the development, sharing, and use of such data and related services.

Standards
➔ If we are trying to integrate datasets from different sources, each
of which used a different datum, projection and coordinate systems
for geo-referencing, it would be a much harder task since we would
have to convert all those data into a common datum, projection and
coordinate systems before we could integrate the data. If everyone
agreed upon what standard they were going to use for datum,
projection and coordinate systems, then we don't have to do this extra
step.
➔ Any standard is a technical document intended for use as a rule,
guideline or definition for common and repeated use. They might
include requirements and recommendations for products, systems,
services etc.
➔ A GIS Standard is a technical document designed to use for
operating with geospatial data.
➔ Standards are necessary to reduce misunderstandings. Standards
help to optimize operations and improve quality.
➔ Geospatial standards increase the compatibility of components,
products and services.
➔ GIS applications should use data format standards to store
geospatial data in a common format. ArcInfo coverage, ESRI
shapefiles, ESRI Geodatabase, KML (Keyhole Markup Language),
GPKG (GeoPackage, defined by the Open Geospatial Consortium)
are some of the most popular geospatial data formats supported by
most of the GIS software packages.
➔ ISO 19115: It is a metadata standard which defines how to
describe Geographical information and associated services, including
contents, spatial-temporal purchases, data quality, access and rights to
use.
➔ GIS standards for GIS services
Standards for GIS services enable users to interact with data,
generally through simple web clients, on a live and real-time basis.
This contains viewing maps, accessing and querying data, running
analyses, and downloading (spatial) data.
Supported services are:
WMS: Web Map Service for sharing maps across the web.
WFS: Web Feature Service for sharing feature data across the web for
direct access to geospatial data.
WMTS: Web Map Tile Service for sharing pre-cached map tiles
across the web for use as base maps.
WPS: Web Processing Service for sharing geoprocessing services
across the web for performing dynamic geospatial analytics.
WCS: Web Coverage Service for sharing geospatial data stored and
managed as a coverage across the web.
Partnership
➔ SDI cannot function properly in a long run, in absence of
partnership and collaborations between different government and
non-government agencies, corporations, institutions.
➔ Successful implementation of the SDI depends on a well-
coordinated effort among federal, province, local governments,
academic institutions, private sector businesses, non-profit
organizations, information technology providers and users.
➔ National Mapping Agency should produce and make available
the framework data and other agencies should produce and make
available other thematic geospatial data. The cost involved in
running an SDI should be shared between major stakeholders.

Different Level of SDI

Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) encompasses various levels of
organization and implementation to facilitate the sharing, access, and
use of spatial data. These levels can be categorized into three main
tiers:
Local Level SDI:

➔ Local SDIs operate at the smallest scale, typically focusing on a

specific administrative area, such as a city, town, or municipality.
➔ They are managed by local governments or organizations
responsible for spatial data within the area.
➔ Data collected and managed at this level often include cadastral
data, zoning information, infrastructure networks, land use planning
data, and property information.
➔ Local SDIs support applications like urban planning,
infrastructure development, environmental management, and
emergency response within the jurisdiction.

National or Regional Level SDI:

➔ National or regional SDIs cover larger geographic areas, such as
entire countries, states, provinces, or regions.
➔ They are managed by government agencies, national mapping
organizations, or regional bodies responsible for coordinating spatial
data activities.
➔ Data integrated at this level may include topographic maps,
cadastral information, transportation networks, environmental data,
population statistics, and administrative boundaries.
➔ National or regional SDIs support applications like land
administration, natural resource management, economic
development, transportation planning, and disaster management
within the respective regions.
Global Level SDI:
➔ Global SDIs aim to provide a framework for sharing spatial data
on a worldwide scale.
➔ They are managed by international organizations, associations,
or collaborations among multiple countries.
➔ Data managed within global SDIs typically include global
environmental data, satellite imagery, climate data, biodiversity
information, and geospatial reference data.
 ➔ Global SDIs support applications like climate change
monitoring, disaster risk reduction, environmental conservation,

sustainable development, and international collaboration in various

domains.
These levels of SDI hierarchy form a multi-tiered framework that
facilitates the integration and interoperability of spatial data across
different administrative boundaries and scales, enabling informed
decision-making, resource management, and sustainable development
at local, national, and global levels.
 Partnership in NSDI
Present Situation and Challenges of NSDI
In Nepal, SDI is being developed as a tool for national spatial data
collection, storage, processing and dissemination. NSDI is the
common portal to use geospatial data in effective and efficient way
and link with another attribute database.
Major geospatial information in Nepal are:
➢ Series of National Topographical Maps or database
➢ Orthophoto maps
 ➢ Cadastral Maps
➢ Nation wide coverage of Geodetic control networks
➢ Digital Elevation Model
➢ National coverage of land resource maps
➢ Thematic maps
Government of Nepal has initiated the National Geographic
Information Infrastructure Project(NGIIP), as a NSDI initative since
2000.
NGII was envisioned as a way of enhancing the accessibility,
communication and use of geospatial information through adoption
of a common architecture and best practices to support a wide variety
of decision at all level of society.
Major Stakeholder in Nepal:
Following are some of the organizations that produces , uses and
distribute the geospatial information in Nepal.
➢ Government Organizations
➢ Survey Department
➢ National Land Use Projection
➢ ICIMOD
 ➢ Forest Resource Mapping Projection and so on….

Challenges of SDI in Nepal

➔ Institutional Coordination: Lack of coordination among
government agencies and stakeholders remains a significant
challenge. Different agencies often collect and manage spatial data
independently, leading to duplication of efforts and inconsistencies
in data quality.
➔ Data Quality and Standards: Ensuring the quality and
standardization of spatial data across different agencies is a
challenge. There is a need for common standards and guidelines for
data collection, storage, and sharing.
➔ Data Accessibility: Limited access to spatial data, especially for
non-governmental organizations, researchers, and the public, hinders
the effective use of geospatial information for decision-making and
development.
➔ Infrastructure and Technology: Inadequate infrastructure and
technological capabilities pose challenges to data storage,
processing, and dissemination. Many government agencies lack the
necessary hardware, software, and expertise to effectively manage
spatial data.
➔ Legal and Policy Framework: There may be gaps in the legal and
policy framework governing the NSDI, including issues related to
data sharing, privacy, and security. Clarifying these aspects is
essential for building trust and promoting collaboration among
stakeholders.
➔ Funding and Sustainability: Limited financial resources and
funding constraints pose challenges to the sustainable development
and maintenance of the NSDI infrastructure. There is a need for
long-term investment and support from the government and
international donors.