The Okavango Delta has a high level of biodiversity and is a vital component of the Northern Botswana Conservation Zone, which includes multiple ecosystems and national parks and connects to wilderness areas in neighboring countries. The Okavango Research Institute (ORI), part of the University of Botswana (UB), will develop the Okavango Repository for BIodiverSity Data (ORBIS) to store and disseminate biodiversity and related ecological data from the Okavango Delta. This repository will also be able to incorporate data from other ecosystems throughout Botswana and the southern African region.

This six-month planning period will define the elements necessary for successful implantation of ORBIS. These elements include technical design, selection of optimal technologies, and data protocols that will ensure an effective and sustainable system. This system will expand on a previous JRS project where ORI developed a portal to store and access their own environmental monitoring data. ORI will apply the lessons learned from this project to the development of an information system for all data collected in the Okavango Delta. ORBIS will be able to handle multiple types of biodiversity and ecological data, handle rich and diverse national and regional biodiversity datasets, and extend Botswana’s limited capacity for data management.

1. Determine biodiversity data, information, and knowledge needs for ORBIS stakeholders through stakeholder meetings and workshops.
2. Identify the most appropriate system design to meet Botswana’s biodiversity data management requirements through a technical workshop with national and international data professionals and experts.
3. Secure feedback from stakeholders on the proposed system designs generated from the technical workshop.
4. Develop a plan for the implementation of ORBIS.

1. A stakeholder report that identifies approximately 5 priority data types, informs system design, and serves as a guide towards system development.
2. A report on outputs from the technical workshop detailing potential system designs.
3. An implementation plan for ORBIS that considers sustainability, governance, data ownership, system design, priority data processing pathways, infrastructure requirements, and training.
4. A grant application proposal to the JRS Biodiversity for ongoing funding of ORBIS implementation.

The final implementation report will be the base for future activities and will list the milestones for system design, testing, implementation, and fully functional system launch over a 24-36-month period. This project will identify a system for implementation, and develop a roadmap for further biodiversity‐related system growth in Botswana and southern Africa. The planning phase aims to secure JRS Biodiversity Funding to develop and launch ORBIS.

Dr. Emily Bennitt is a herbivore ecologist who has been working in Botswana since 2007, when she began research for her PhD on Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer caffer) in the Okavango Delta. She joined the Okavango Research Institute in 2014, where she works in close partnership with national NGOs and government departments. Emily is supervising several students working on a variety of conservation-related projects and organizes regular outreach activities to inform the public of research findings. Emily coordinates AfriMove, a regional database for movement data from African mammals, and is working to improve data management in Botswana.