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Mona GeoInformatics launches Antigua and Barbuda’s environmental information system

Published:Tuesday | November 2, 2021 | 12:08 AM
Jason Williams (left at podium), data manager at the Department of Environment, government of Antigua and Barbuda, addresses the official launch of the environmental information system recently. Sharing in the moment are Dr Ava Maxam (on screen,left), depu
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Jason Williams (left at podium), data manager at the Department of Environment, government of Antigua and Barbuda, addresses the official launch of the environmental information system recently. Sharing in the moment are Dr Ava Maxam (on screen,left), deputy director, Mona GeoInformatics Institute; Mohammed Nagdee (on screen), programme manager for sustainable solutions and energy, United Nations Development Programme; and David Oswald (sitting at right), president, Design + Environment Inc.

The Government of Antigua and Barbuda is now better equipped to monitor its environment through the establishment of a national environmental information system (EIS), which was developed by Jamaica’s Mona GeoInformatics Institute (MGI) in partnership with Design + Environment (DE) Inc.

The Antigua and Barbuda EIS is the first of its kind in the country and aims to improve accessibility to pertinent data in strengthening the country’s response mechanism to environmental reporting.

Dr Ava Maxam, deputy director at MGI, led the Jamaica-based software engineering team that developed the Antigua and Barbuda EIS online platform. This was in association with the Canada-based team Design + Environment Inc, headed by David Oswald, the environmental experts on the project.

“This system now improves accessibility to patterns and trends for vital indicators such as rainfall, temperature, drought risk, terrain, and shoreline movements. This directly supports the government of Antigua and Barbuda’s reporting mandate under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, and the UN Convention on Combat Desertification,” said Maxam.

She added that it also includes visualisation of the status of environmental indicators, to improve compliance by producing and sharing evidence-based information for monitoring and reporting.

Jason Williams of the Department of Environment in Antigua and Barbuda commended the MGI and DE teams in developing the requirements and implementing the platform.

“The MGI consultants brought a high level of professionalism to the consultancy, from gathering the necessary baseline information to engagements with local stakeholders in the design phase,” said Williams.

He noted: “They were quick and willing to accommodate the wishes and needs of the department of environment and in the end, delivered a high-quality product that will serve as the go-to tool for the management of environmental data and information in the country. Additionally, their vast experience allowed them to provide very credible and reliable advice and recommendations. It was a pleasure and a true learning experience working with this great team of consultants.”

The EIS was developed through funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and implemented through the Department of Environment, Ministry of Health and the Environment of the Government of Antigua and Barbuda.

Antigua and Barbuda is located in the Eastern Caribbean and has low-lying topographies, with increasing threats to populations, landscapes and ecosystems due to global warming and sea-level rise. The EIS is a high-quality information framework developed by MGI and DE for national environmental policy towards fulfilling Multi-lateral Environment Agreements – global treaties ratified by the government. Multi-lateral Environmental Agreements are legal instruments which bind countries that have agreed to become parties.

Mona GeoInformatics Institute has a rich experience throughout the Caribbean, implementing similar decision support systems, including the EIS for the Government of Saint Lucia.