Experts in geospatial and public health fields on Wednesday gathered in Kano to mark the 2025 World Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Day, highlighting the technology’s role in promoting global health equity and development planning.
The event, organised by eHealth Africa, carried the theme: “GIS for Global Health Equity: Embracing the Geo-Generalist Era”, and brought together innovators, health practitioners, researchers, and development partners.
Mr Abdulhamid Yahaya, Deputy Director of Global Health Informatics at eHealth Africa, said the celebration demonstrated how GIS was transforming health intelligence and improving community resilience across Africa.
He said, “We are celebrating the growing importance of geo-generalists and the role GIS plays in driving global health equity. The forum allows stakeholders to share insights on applying geospatial data to tackle health challenges.”
The Director-General of Kano Geographic Information System (KANGIS), Dr Dalhatu Aliyu Sani, described GIS Day as an annual platform for showcasing the impact of geospatial tools in addressing public health problems.
Aliyu-Sani, who presented a systematic review on GIS applications in global health, noted that Africa ranks third globally in GIS-related public health publications.
He added that Kano State had significantly improved its geospatial infrastructure since the re-establishment of KANGIS, following investments in enterprise GIS and ICT systems.
“With improved systems, KANGIS now generates over N750 million monthly, compared to N50 million previously,” he said, noting that the state had started implementing its Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) to support sectors such as security, agriculture, health, and other critical areas.
“GIS is no longer just about land administration. It is about spatial data for planning, security, environmental monitoring, and sustainable development,” Aliyu-Sani added.
Mr Oros-ghene Adia, Deputy Director and Technical Lead at CORE Group Partners Project, said GIS had transformed disease eradication and health service delivery, including interventions against polio and malaria.
He said, “GIS helps us understand where people live, where diseases occur, and how services can reach them more effectively. It has moved us from static paper maps to dynamic, data-driven decision-making.”
Adia identified limited skills, infrastructure gaps, and data challenges as barriers to wider GIS adoption in Nigeria but expressed optimism that ongoing advocacy and innovation would bridge these gaps.
Similarly, Dr Esther Shupel-Ibrahim, Chief Scientific Officer at the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), said GIS and remote sensing were indispensable for detecting, analysing, and responding to health outbreaks.
She urged states to adopt modern geospatial tools, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, warning that reliance on traditional methods would hamper responses to emerging challenges such as climate-driven health threats.