GIS USED FOR TOWN PLANNING
Introduction
South Africa has gone and is still going through social, political and economic change since the freedom of Nelson Mandela from Robin Island in 1990 (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913). President Nelson Mandela’s government and party his, the ANC, was democratically elected in 1994, introduced a Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP), free basic service delivery as the basis for improving the standards of living and the quality of life of those that were alienated, disenfranchised and excluded under the apartheid government (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913). This essay will explore the fundamental contributions of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), in national building at national, provincial, and local levels in South Africa (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913). It will also provide the use of GIS in basic service delivery in poor communities. Case studies and examples will be provided to support that GIS is a useful tool (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913).
GIS offers significant advantages over conventional computer programs and can be used in a wide range of applications (US Department of transportation 2006). GIS allows users to visualise the spatial relationships between numerous geographically referenced features, such as the location of RDP houses and where infrastructure needs to be developed (US Department of transportation 2006). GIS also facilitates the integration of different databases in South Africa (US Department of transportation 2006). Regional planners, for example, could use GIS to integrate a database with sufficient information on the type of land that can be utilised to build local houses and include projects with another database that involve information on basic service delivery in those areas and produce a map that identifies environmentally sensitive areas that may be affected by new infrastructure such as a natural habitat for endangered animals (US Department of transportation
South Africa has gone and is still going through social, political and economic change since the freedom of Nelson Mandela from Robin Island in 1990 (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913). President Nelson Mandela’s government and party his, the ANC, was democratically elected in 1994, introduced a Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP), free basic service delivery as the basis for improving the standards of living and the quality of life of those that were alienated, disenfranchised and excluded under the apartheid government (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913). This essay will explore the fundamental contributions of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), in national building at national, provincial, and local levels in South Africa (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913). It will also provide the use of GIS in basic service delivery in poor communities. Case studies and examples will be provided to support that GIS is a useful tool (Macdevette, Fincham & Forsyth 2009: 913).
GIS offers significant advantages over conventional computer programs and can be used in a wide range of applications (US Department of transportation 2006). GIS allows users to visualise the spatial relationships between numerous geographically referenced features, such as the location of RDP houses and where infrastructure needs to be developed (US Department of transportation 2006). GIS also facilitates the integration of different databases in South Africa (US Department of transportation 2006). Regional planners, for example, could use GIS to integrate a database with sufficient information on the type of land that can be utilised to build local houses and include projects with another database that involve information on basic service delivery in those areas and produce a map that identifies environmentally sensitive areas that may be affected by new infrastructure such as a natural habitat for endangered animals (US Department of transportation