A research report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a Degree of Master of Engineering, School of Environment, Resources and Development

Research Report (M. Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1993

This project was designed to demonstrate the usefulness of a personal computer (PC) for integrating socioeconomic and biophysical data to make maps for regional development planning. We used raster and vector geographic information systems (GIS) with province-level socioeconomic data to produce regional maps with novel formats, among them "Human Development Index" (HDI) status maps. These maps show zones having common development needs within a region consisting of seventeen provinces of northeast Thailand (the "Esarn" region). The HDI data was shown in two different map formats: (i) · aggregated by province, and (ii) distributed on a 5 km2 grid across the region. The former format shows discrete step changes in HDI at provincial boundaries. The latter format shows data distributed continuously across the region. (Provincial boundaries were later superimposed upon the map.) The HDI data on the latter map were further modified by weighting the HDI with population density (for each 5 km2), producing a map that indicated areas of where the greatest number of people have the greatest needs. This paper presents the project rationale, data base design, map development methodology, and speculates on the usefulness of each type of map format for assisting decision-makers in planning agencies, and for educating the general public. We conclude with recommendations for similar types of map presentations that would help identify regional infrastructure and natural resource development opportunities, while also assisting planning teams in identifying and mitigating potential "development-environment" conflicts at the policy, program and project planning stages.