An inventory and comparison of globally consistent geospatial databases and libraries

This report presents an inventory of global data sources which can be used to provide consistent geospatial baselines for core framework data layers in the support of generalized base mapping, emergency preparedness and response, food security and poverty mapping. In the report, only globally consistent data sources at the scales of 1:5 million or larger for vector data and a nominal pixel size of 5 arc minutes or higher resolution for raster data, were considered. The sources of data presented in the inventory were identified based on a review of on-line Internet resources conducted in the first quarter of 2004 and updated in January 2005.