Technical capacity to handle and manipulate environmental information also varies. Most institutions identified the need for data collection, data analysis and technical writing as major constraints. Some organisations had a decent number of well- qualified personnel with skills in the management of environ- mental information. This is especially the case in research or academic-based institutions. Other institutions are not so fortu- nate, especially at local levels. For instance in Nyamagabe district only about four officers in the district can manipulate GIS data (Ndayitabi 2009). The main areas identified by respondents for training included:

• • • •

Data collection, entry, processing and analysis, Quality assurance,

Database development, Development of indicators,

• Technical writing, • • •

Proposal writing, GIS and remote sensing, Archiving of data and spatial imagery,

• Graphic design (publishing), • Communications, • Web applications, •

• OGMR

Environmental management and planning for sustainable development, and

Environmental accounting, fiscal reform and budgeting. Equipment

Although most organisations have computers, their quality and quantity varies. Some organisations like CGIS-NUR, Ministry of Infrastructure, ISAR, RECO-RWASCO, Ministry of Finance, NLC, have state-of-the-art computers and software, with fibre optic or satellite-linked internet access. At the other end of the spectrum are institutions with no computing or even communi- cation facilities. This latter group make up a third of all surveyed institutions. This extreme variation in computing capacities raises challenges when institutions attempt to share data. Even where equipment is available, maintenance is at times a problem especially where departmental finances are scarce. This situation is more prevalent at the district level. Table 2 shows the equip- ment requirements of the institutions surveyed.

Rwanda

Initiative for Sustainable Develop-

ment (RISD) RENGOF

Rwanda Bamboo Society

Scanners-

Graphic design equipmen- tRemote sens- ing equipment- Video camera

Photocopier- Web serverIn- ternet client

Photocopi- erLocal Area NetworkCom- munication/ groupware

33 REASON

PhotocopierWeb serverInternet client

MINECO- FIN

Document man- agement systemLi- brary system

Another issue is the use of different software to handle simi- lar but sector-specific data needs of some institutions. For in- stance the meteorology department uses Windsurf software to draw maps with isobars, and Climlab software for statistical analysis. CGIS-NUR uses ArcGIS and ERDAS Imagine for their mapping and image processing work. The use of differ- ent software can become an issue in the face of data exchange and software integration.

Table 2: Equipment needs of the institutions surveyed

Organisa- tion

Equipment requirements

MINISANTE Electronic archives

GIS hardware and software- Database management systemsMin- eral analysis laboratories- Field equip- ment for new mining data

Organisa- tion

National Land Centre

Equipment re- quirements

Database manage- ment systemGeo- data processing

CGIS-NUR

Software (image processing, pro- fessional cartogra- phy)Printers (dual side)PlottersA0 scanner

Up-to-date licence for GIS & remote sensing software Broadband Inter- net connectivity