Dzaleka Mapping Project

Purpose

The Dzaleka Mapping Project was MapMalawi’s first project. It aimed to create open geospatial data showing buildings, housing, schools, health facilities, water points, sanitation infrastructure, and other services in a densely populated settlement where existing maps were incomplete.

MapMalawi was founded in December 2020 by Ndapile Mkuwu and Zola Manyungwa, Malawian YouthMappers alumni with experience in drone and geospatial technology.

Methods

The project used authorised drone flights to capture imagery at approximately three centimetres per pixel. Volunteers then used the imagery in the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team Tasking Manager to digitise buildings and other features. Field mapping and participatory GIS were planned to verify information that could not be identified from the air.

Training and participation

The project proposal included training university students, women from Dzaleka, and members of Malawi’s OpenStreetMap community. It also planned collaboration with TakenoLAB and local YouthMappers chapters.

Use of the data

MapMalawi reported sharing imagery with UNHCR for decongestion work. The project demonstrates how community mapping can make services and infrastructure more visible, but it also raises ongoing questions about local participation, data maintenance, privacy, and who makes decisions from the resulting maps.