The AfricaGIS 2005 Conference, to be held at the CSIR International Convention Centre, from 31 October to 4 November, marks the 12th anniversary of the launch of this major event, and the 7th biennial conference of this nature. The conference theme, Beyond talk: Geo-information working for Africa, will be unpacked through more than 200 papers to be presented, numerous workshops and 46 exhibitors from all over the world. A number of CSIR scientists will participate in the conference, from areas such as the Centre for Logistics in CSIR Built Environment, CSIR Natural Resources and the Environment, CSIR Satellite Applications Centre and Information and Communications Technology for Earth Observation (ICT4EO) from the Meraka Institute.

The conference aims to demonstrate the relevance of geo-information as a decision-support tool to support local, national, sub-regional and regional priorities, as well as emerging issues. The core theme will explore local-level applications of geo-information to planning and development, equitable access to and effective use of resources and basic services, and the vulnerability of populations to and mitigation of disasters. This will also cover the incidence and management of diseases, poverty reduction projects at community level, and the improvement of local development planning and governance through the sharing of information resources at local level.

The conference will investigate global issues and initiatives that impact on the development and application of geo-information in Africa. Achievements in the area of geo-information will also be assessed in the global context and partnership approaches which have contributed to the development of geo-information and its impact on the developmental agenda, will be explored.

The main sponsors for the conference are the Department of Land Affairs, the Department of Science and Technology, Statistics South Africa, ESRI and GIMS. For a list of other sponsors, exhibitors and the full program, please visit www.africagis2005.org.za

For further details on the conference:

• Conference Brief
• Conference programme
• Conference sub-themes
• Pre-Conference workshops
• Registration Form
• Sponsors and donors

• Chairperson: Chris Vlok Email: vlokac@unisa.ac.za Tel. 012 420 6023
• Technical programme: Inge Netterberg Email: Inge.Netterberg@arup.com Tel. 082 418 8712
• AfricaGIS2005 marketing: Birgit Andrich. E-mail: birgitandrich@hotmail.com Tel. 082 223 4080
• GISSA marketing: Ina Muresan. E-mail: muresan@wbs.co.za Tel. 083 547 2084.
• Media Liaison: Piet Marais. E-mail: hanniem@mweb.co.za. Tel. 082 445 5095.