Tufton

Agriculture Minister Dr Christopher Tufton on Tuesday signed a $32.3-million contract with Spatial Innovision Limited for the installation and commissioning of a National GPS-based Positioning and Navigation System.

This system will enable real-time data collection islandwide on a 24-hour basis and, as such, it will facilitate greater efficiency and cost saving in a number of the ministry's activities including, land surveying, urban/municipal mapping, disaster assessment and the monitoring and management of plant pests and diseases.

In the area of disaster assessment, Dr Tufton said: "The use of this technology will allow for speedy geo-referencing of the affected areas, so as to fast-track the planning and implementation of recovery measures."

He added: "With the proposed islandwide expansion of the Ministry's Land Administration & Management Project (LAMP), the commissioning of the National GPS-based Positioning System will also facilitate real-time surveying, mapping and data collection, which account for the most significant costs in the land adjudication and title registration process."

Contract terms

Under the terms of the contract signed today, the ministry's Spatial Data Management Division and the National Land Agency's Surveys and Mapping Division will jointly oversee the installation of the new system, while Spatial Innovision Limited will undertake the actual installation and commissioning of the service.

The system will be funded from the Government's Capital 'A' Budget, with additional inputs from the ministry's Land Administration & Management Project, the National Water Commission and the National Housing Trust.