OpenStreetMap
Rwanda made international news in 1994 with the terrible human tragedy of the genocide. While it has been 21 years since the genocide, this is still the image many people have in their minds when they think about Rwanda. But not any more. Today, Rwanda is an African country on the move. The economy is growing, livelihoods are building, development is happening everywhere and hope in is the air. Hope, not only for Rwanda’s prosperity and success, but that Rwanda’s renaissance will influence neigbouring countries and serve as a demonstration of what is possible when a country adopts sound policies and makes good choices. The boom in construction has been demonstrated in Rwanda’s improving network of roads. Today, the country boasts a network of major roads which are paved and well maintained. Police ensure that speeding and dangerous drivers are under control (and, unlike other African countries, it is a serious offense to offer a Rwandan police officer a bribe). The country has a long journey ahead of it. The majority of the population live in poverty. But with a major emphasis on education and job training for the future, Rwanda’s future looks bright. I moved here with my wife in 2014 to work in partnership with a local Christian denomination. it is a great privilege to be a part of their work in helping the poor and underprivileged as Rwanda builds for the future. I appreciate the work of OSM contributors from around the world who are helping map Rwanda. Having the Map.me app on my ipad is a huge benefit for getting around the country. If anyone needs ‘boots on the ground’ to verify or examine something, please feel free to ask. Jonathan
Discussion
Comment from Hendric Stattmann on 14 June 2015 at 06:59
Dear Jonathan,
Thank you for this interesting article. It is indeed good to read that your country is slowly and steadily recovering from the horrific events of 1994. Rwanda is an encoureaging exception in a continent that appears to many people as the home of failed states (Libya, Somalia just to name a few). Rebuilding a country is always a tremendous effort, requiring millions of small steps. Let’s hope that the OSM people through their work will provide one of these steps.
Take care! Hendric
Comment from skunk on 14 June 2015 at 07:00
I’ve never mapped Rwanda nor have I ever travelled the country. I just read your interesting blog entry :-)
I don’t know what people mapping Rwanda need, but the least I can think of, is to let a GPS receiver running while travelling the country and uploading these GPX tracks to the OSM homepage (find the link above).
You can also help by writing map notes (there’s an icon on the right side of the map on the OSM homepage) when you find things wrong / missing, so mappers can handle these issues. Or you can map it yourself :-)
Check out the beginners guide if you want to learn more about OSM: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Beginners%27_guide
Have fun!
Comment from Warin61 on 14 June 2015 at 12:14
Hi + thanks! I note your edits to the OSM in Rwanda. Thank you for the contributions and for your ‘feet on the ground’.
Some roads I have come across elsewhere in the world have been very straight lines compared to the satellite imagery, I think that comes from a lack of time but an interest to show that there is a road between the two points. Though I have made something similar in a place where I know there is a track .. but it is hidden by tree cover. In another case the road was remade near the original road. In ‘Outback Australia’ it is not unusual for the grader driver to decide to change the course of a road .. if he, the property manager or someone decides that the road would be better off elsewhere then it may well be made elsewhere! The satellite imagery may show the old road .. as may old maps. So be careful about roads and the map/satellite imagery, they may not agree for lots of reasons.
You are very well place to ‘see’ what is needed there as you are using the map. Map.me is good .. others to try are OsmAnd and MapOut. Each has a different way of displaying the data - OsmAnd has at least 3 ways of displaying the daat - one fore cars, another for bicycle another for pedestrians. MapOut has a 3D effect for topographic information.
One of the problems ‘we’ westerners have is realizing that the world does not conform to our ideas…. If there is something that should be mapped and you cannot find a tag for it … make one up, put it (and others) on the map .. and then document it on the wiki. If you need help with that .. contact me.. or I’m sure many others.
Using the ipad to get gpx tracks may work .. depends on how good the thing works in a car. On foot should be ok. However battery life may be an issue. I’d not be too worried about roads .. usually good enough to represent them and buildings from the satellite imagery. It is the detail of where you can get water, food, fuel and camping/lodging that travelers will want first. Things like Police stations, doctors/hospitals etc come secondary but when wanted are high on the list. Those things cannot be done from the satellite imagery!
Good Luck.