A Geographic Information System Base Spatial Decision Support Systems for Poverty Analysis and Management in Adamawa State, Nigeria

Abstract

Poverty is a multidimensional, multifaceted, and complex, poverty can manifest in the social, political, economic, environmental and any sector of human existence. In Nigeria pervious government and present administration have adopted many poverty alleviations programs but most of them did not yield any positive result due to lack of spatial Geodatabase. Therefore, this article uses the concept of spatial decision support system and Geographic Information System in assessing the spatial distribution of poverty in Adamawa State as a model for decision making. Spatial decision making are multi-facetted challenges that needs technical requirement because they contain economic, social, environmental, and political dimension. Solving theses complex issues requires integrating and using information systems such as Geographic Information System and Spatial Decision Support Systems. The pragmatic approach was used as the methodology for collecting spatial information and for making inquiries into the complex phenomena. The geographic disparities theory was used as a lens to provide answers to the research questions. The Poverty situation in Adamawa State was measured using the Fosre, Greer and Thorbecke (FGT) index to determine the incidence of poverty in the state. A GIS base spatial decision support system model was design for decision making on how to alleviate poverty in disadvantage areas of the state.