The contract with ESA is part of the Agency's Heritage Space Programme initiative and aims, also supported by the Indian Space Agency ISRO, to enable long term preservation of and public accessibility to the EO data archive of the Indian Remote Sensing satellites IRS-1C and IRS-1D. The data had been collected over Europe between 1996-2005, during the pre-Sentinel era.
Thanks to the free dissemination of the data, which can be integrated with those of the Copernicus programme Sentinels, it will be possible to support long term historical analyses of climate-relevant key indicators and land cover and land use trends that are relevant to Climate Change and Green Deal policies and action in Europe.
In Suriname, GAF has been awarded by the Suriname Competitiveness and Sector Diversification (SCSD) Programme, managed and financed by The World Bank, the lead role in two consultancy contracts, with these being "International mining specialist to support the establishment and commissioning of the Minerals Institute of Suriname: Cadastre and Geological Survey" and "Establishment and commissioning of the Minerals Institute of Suriname: Mining Inspectorate".
The mining industry has strategic importance for the economy of Suriname. Because of this, and the fact that the mineral resource potential of the country is still untapped to a considerable extent, the "Delfstoffen Authoriteit Suriname" (DAS) authority has been newly created. Its objectives are the promotion, coordination, regulation, monitoring and inspection of the mining industry, with the aim of ensuring it makes an optimal contribution to Suriname’s sustainable development.
In support of DAS, GAF has been assigned the task of assessing, defining, designing and conceptualising the main pillars of a strong mining governance structure.
The aim of this is to establish a modern digital mining cadastre, ensure efficient performance of the geological survey and set up a mine inspection department. Activities include assessing the existing legal and regulatory frameworks, the extractive industry sector and all its stakeholders.