Dunia: A Cross-Cutting Solution to Africa’s Earth Observation Challenges
Problem Statement: The Need for a Comprehensive Approach
Africa faces significant challenges in fully leveraging Earth Observation (EO) data to drive sustainable development. Despite the potential of space technologies to address critical issues—such as environmental monitoring, agricultural management, urban planning, and disaster preparedness—the continent is hindered by structural limitations in infrastructure, connectivity, and technical expertise. These barriers impede access to and utilisation of EO services, delaying progress in key developmental areas. One of the most pressing challenges is limited access to EO data due to the continent’s inadequate computing infrastructure. High-resolution EO datasets, such as those provided by the Copernicus Sentinel missions, require substantial computational power for processing and interpretation. However, many African nations lack the necessary data-processing infrastructure, including high-capacity servers and data centres, making extracting actionable insights from available EO resources difficult.
Similarly, bandwidth and connectivity constraints represent another significant obstacle. Africa is home to some of the most under-connected regions in the world, particularly in rural areas where EO data could have the most significant impact on sectors like agriculture and environmental management. Accessing large EO datasets demands reliable, high-speed internet connections, which are often unavailable in these regions. Even when connections exist, they are costly or unreliable, exacerbating the data access bottleneck. Moreover, there is a notable gap in the technical expertise required to interpret and apply EO data effectively. Although EO data offers powerful insights, its potential remains largely untapped due to the shortage of specialists who can process and analyse it. This knowledge gap limits the ability of local institutions and individuals to make informed decisions, even when EO data is accessible.
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Dunia: A Tailored Solution for Africa
Recognising these challenges, GeoVille, in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), launched Dunia in November 2023—a cloud-based platform designed to overcome the unique obstacles African nations face in accessing and utilising EO data. Dunia centralises data processing, removing the need for local infrastructure, and provides users with the tools to process Copernicus data directly from the cloud. This cloud-based architecture significantly reduces the reliance on high-capacity servers and local computational resources.
Dunia is engineered for low-bandwidth environments, making it accessible even in regions with limited connectivity. This feature is critical for rural and remote areas where traditional EO platforms have been largely inaccessible. The platform’s intuitive interface is another advantage, making it user-friendly for a wide range of users—from novice developers to seasoned EO professionals. By bridging the technical knowledge gap, Dunia empowers African users to apply EO data to address various local challenges and promote sustainable development across the continent.
Impact of Dunia: Eleven Months Post-Launch
Eleven months after its launch, Dunia has attracted a growing user base across Africa, particularly in English-and French-speaking regions. With tens of thousands of African users, the platform’s emphasis on collaboration and knowledge-sharing has made it a popular tool for developers. The real-time collaboration feature allows users to securely exchange data and insights with colleagues and clients, regardless of location. Furthermore, Dunia’s infrastructure supports an array of tools and processing capabilities, fostering the sharing of scripts, products, and outputs through its dedicated marketplace.
Furthermore, Dunia’s Sandbox provides users with a convenient and accessible research, development, and service deployment environment. This web-based environment offers a selection of free EO datasets and tools, enabling users to develop customised solutions in their virtual workspaces. The platform’s design emphasises flexibility, allowing African users to create thematic applications tailored to their specific challenges, ranging from agricultural management to marine operations.
User Testimonials: Diverse Experiences with Dunia
In understanding the broader implications and appeal of the Dunia platform, Space in Africa spoke with two prominent users: Ignatius Kweku Williams, Training Officer for Marine and Coastal Area Management in North and West Africa (MarCoNWa), GMES and Africa, and Dr Marie Smith, Researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Africa Marine and Coastal Operations for Southern Africa. Their testimonies comprehensively view the platform’s strengths, weaknesses, and real-world applicability.
Ease of Training and Technical Support
Ignatius Kweku Williams has found Dunia to be a pivotal tool as a training officer, where he works with a wide range of stakeholders, from beginners to advanced practitioners, across several African nations. According to Williams, Dunia’s cloud-based architecture significantly reduces the burden on local infrastructure, a common problem in Africa. Dunia’s convenience stands out in training settings with diverse systems and technical capabilities. It allows participants to access, process, and visualise EO data directly through the platform without installing or maintaining heavy software on their devices.
“One of the most significant advantages of Dunia is that it is essentially a one-stop shop for accessing, processing, and visualising data on a single platform,” said Williams. This streamlined approach has allowed him to train people on using tools like QGIS and SNAP, which are pre-installed on the platform, in a way that is accessible for novices while still beneficial for more experienced users familiar with Python and Jupyter notebooks.
Williams also commended the technical support from the Dunia team, highlighting their responsiveness during training sessions. He shared an example from a programme organised by the International Commission of the Congo-Oubangui-Sangha Basin (CICOS) and the University of Ghana, where his team needed specific datasets for training participants. The Dunia support team quickly provided the necessary materials. The training included participants from six Central African countries: Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the Republic of Congo, and São Tomé and Príncipe. In addition, he emphasised that this reliability makes Dunia an indispensable tool for large-scale training and development programmes.
However, Williams noted a few technical challenges, including resource access limitations. In some instances, participants could not retrieve certain datasets during Congo-based training, which slowed the course’s progress. While Williams appreciates the platform’s overall reliability, he believes that Dunia’s scalability and ability to handle larger user volumes could be further improved to ensure seamless access across varying bandwidth environments.
Accessibility and User-Centric Training
Dr Marie Smith, a researcher at CSIR focused on marine and aquaculture disciplines, is equally enthusiastic about Dunia’s potential. Her primary use of Dunia involves training students on utilising EO data, particularly from Copernicus products, for environmental monitoring related to marine and fisheries sectors.
What stands out most to Dr Smith is Dunia’s accessibility—it is designed for low-bandwidth environments and works seamlessly across different devices, including tablets and mobile phones. “The platform’s prepackaged resources and cloud-based structure eliminate the need to install large software packages, which is especially beneficial for students with limited computational resources,” she explained. Dr Smith has used the platform in several educational settings and noted that students appreciate not having to navigate complicated setup processes or download heavy files. Additionally, Dunia allows students to directly apply tools like Python scripts or notebooks, which are essential in advanced EO data analysis, without requiring prior coding knowledge. Dr Smith shared how Dunia provided a stable platform for training, enabling students to focus on understanding and analysing EO data instead of being bogged down by software limitations or setup complications.
However, like Williams, Dr Smith faced technical issues during her sessions. She recounted a scenario in which about half of her students struggled to log into the platform, an issue that disrupted the training flow and diminished the course’s interactive nature. This prompted her to suggest optimizing Dunia’s login system for smoother access during high-traffic periods or when handling a larger cohort of users.
Dr Smith found the Dunia support team impressive despite these minor setbacks. For instance, when the login issues emerged, the team quickly set up a dedicated support group and created a new notebook tailored to her course’s specific needs. This level of support ensured that the course proceeded effectively, demonstrating Dunia’s commitment to continuous improvement based on user feedback.
Insights on Collaboration and Real-Time Data Sharing
Both Williams and Smith highlighted Dunia’s collaboration features as one of its major strengths. The platform enables users to securely share real-time data, scripts, and outputs, regardless of location. This feature has proven invaluable, particularly in scenarios where cross-border teams need to collaborate on environmental projects, disaster management, or marine operations. Williams said, “It’s very helpful when team members from different countries can work on the same dataset and visualise changes in real-time.” The marketplace within Dunia, where users can share products and processing tools, further enhances collaboration by fostering a sense of community. This enables users to access existing data and create and share their custom solutions. This collaboration allows local developers and researchers to develop region-specific applications based on their regions’ unique environmental and socio-economic challenges.
Looking Forward: Recommendations for Further Development
While both users highly appreciate Dunia’s capabilities, they also offered thoughtful suggestions for its future development. Williams proposed that Dunia explore alternative revenue models to make the platform more accessible. He recommended that Dunia consider integrating features such as advertising or offering a marketplace for credits, which would reduce reliance on paid processing hours while generating alternative revenue streams. On the other hand, Dr Smith emphasised the need for more comprehensive training materials. Although Dunia is intuitive, she suggests adding more real-world examples and case studies that users can directly access through the platform.
Furthermore, She pointed out that several competitors offer more in-depth resources, which she often draws from in the GMES and Africa programmes. These resources would benefit new users looking to familiarise themselves with EO data applications in specific sectors.
Dunia holds great promise for enhancing Africa’s access to EO data and empowering local institutions and individuals to leverage space technologies for development. As the platform continues to evolve, users must remain engaged in providing feedback, ensuring that Dunia meets the needs of diverse users across the continent. By continuing to innovate and address challenges as they arise, Dunia has the potential to play a transformative role in Africa’s sustainable development landscape.
Planned Training Sessions to Enhance User Proficiency
Dunia is collaborating with several African organisations to ensure effective use of the Dunia platform. As part of this effort, they have announced the following training programmes:
- Dunia Hackathon Introduction & Support during the AfriGEO Hackathon – October 18-20, 2024
- Dunia Introduction & Capacity Demonstration with NASRDA – October 22, 2024
- Dunia Introduction with GMES and Africa – November 13, 2024
- Wetland and Flood Mapping Notebooks (Sandbox) with Centre de Suivi Ecologique in Senegal – November 25-26, 2024
- Drought and Vegetation Stress Notebooks (Sandbox) with the Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS) – November 27-28, 2024
Contact the Dunia support team directly for any inquiries or to submit recommendations.