Costa Rica has been integrating geodata into its policy making notably through its National Land Use, Land Cover, and Ecosystems Monitoring System (SIMOCUTE), created by the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) and coordinated by the National Centre of Geoenvironmental Information (CENIGA).

Prerequisites:

• Institutional & political interest and support for utilising EO technologies for services

• Understand national

policies and identify national policies that utilise EO data

• Identify and build relationships with stakeholders involved in policy implementation

• Access to EO data, data processing and analysis capabilities

Cost:

• Ballpark: USD 20k–250k

• Includes: literature review and baseline study, stakeholder consultations report drafting and validation, legal review, parliamentary passage/decrees if needed

Timeframe:

• Overall: 12–24 mo

• Phase: scoping & consultations (3–6 mo), draft policy/legal review (4–8 mo), approval & adoption (5–10 mo)

Pros:

• Policy Coherence - Increases chances of securing funding and support, fostering project implementation.

Considerations:

• Timeline - The process of supporting and actually implementing national policies takes time.

• Articulation - Coordinating efforts across various stakeholders such as governmental departments can be complex.