Re: [egov] Central Address Database

[David RR Webber <david@drrw.info>]

Thomas,

These are huge set of questions!  My sense here is that you have to 
crawl first, then walk and run!

Using jCAM templates to augment schemas so that you can overlay all the 
special rules needed
by delivery context is crucial - and leveraging the work that Ram has 
doen already in CIQ TC
on that.

This task is certainly not trivial - a quick look at the UPU rules for 
somewhere like Venezula or
Morocco shows the challenges of machine processing in areas where 
familiar human habits and
distinctions in addressing formats are the norm.

Linking to a digital map is obviously a cool feature - that is 
potentially enabled by using SVG, GPS
and XML address data in combination... but someone has to specify and 
prove those mechanisms
so that commercial implementors can use the standard (there's products 
already of course in this
area - I visited one vendor two weeks ago ehre in Wash DC area).

As to business model - frankly I see this works best when it is a 
citizen / government partnership.
The OASIS BCM / EPR work and the EPRforum.org work is emphasizing the 
use of XDS and
BizID concepts to allow citizens to manage their own information in 
collaboration with e-Service
and e-Government providers.  This works will the current ISP world - but 
the core address management
software is open source and based around the EPR design rules.  Several 
governments in Europe are
looking at how they can use their existing registry services and extend 
them - as obviously this
becomes not just about addresses - but also about healthcare cards, 
national insurance, and much more.

The BizID model is based on the fact that private companies will switch 
to using an accredited
address service since it is cheaper for them than manually maintaining 
internal ones - and also citizens can
instantly provide updated addressing to their profiles via their BizIDs 
when they change jobs, house,
medical insurance, etc.  Therefore ISP-style providers can charge for 
these feeds to off-set the
free services to citizens. The ability to use ebXML Registry V3 features 
and federate content and
searches is vital, not to mention the security models and ability to 
maintain access logs for citizens.

Anyway - you can find out more on EPR work and XDS from the website:  
http://www.eprforum.org

We just presented in Brussels on these concepts - and we have a PPT the 
TC/SC has that gives
more low-level details on the mechanisms that was posted a couple of 
weeks back.

Where this is today - is getting the XDS work and EPR BizID / jCAM 
models aligned for the phase 2
in 2005.  We definately be happy to discuss possiblities of creating 
some joint initiaitve - possibly
thru the e-Gov TC, and including BCM/EPR and IHC / IHE teams.   This 
would use open source as the
means to develop the components to underpin the functionality needed.

Caution though - while conceptually this roadmap is compelling IMHO - 
there is a chunk of hard work
that needs to be funded and planned for to extend and purpose the 
existing software.  This is within
reach.

Creating this infrastructure foundation would then allow us to begin 
thinking about all the
great use cases you then mention!! ; -)

Thanks, DW

================================================================
Thomas Lee wrote:

> Dear eGov TC,
>
> I'd like to seek your advice on building a central address database to 
> facilitate e-government applications. The central address database 
> essentially intends to record every valid address in the city so that 
> computer validation on address input from e-government applications is 
> possible. Also the address database can be used to perform 
> geographical data analysis, e.g. census data.
>
> In Hong Kong, the Government is finalizing the standard formats (XML 
> Schema)  for representing address information for sharing. However, 
> this is only at the syntax level but can't cater for the data 
> semantics and correctness. We're looking at the value and feasibility 
> to build a central address database although various departmental 
> address databases (which are not aligned with each other, e.g. storing 
> addresses in different formats) do already exist in different 
> agencies, e.g. Post Office, for their own work purposes.
>
> We'd like to see if you have any views on this, e.g. regarding the 
> following questions.
>
> 1) does your government own this central aligned address database? how 
> is it be used?
>
> 2) is the address database linked to digital maps ?
>
> 3) is the address database 2-D or 3-D, i.e. does it have floor and 
> property unit information ?
>
> 4) what is the business model for maintaining and offering the address 
> database ?  e.g. is it a public-private-partnership arrangement ?
>
> 5) what agencies (both public and private) are involved in the 
> maintenance of the address database (i.e. who are the data 
> contributors and what data do they contribute), and what is the role / 
> responsibility and workflow between them ?
>
> 6) how much effort / resource do these agencies put in to maintain the 
> address database ?
>
> 7) is there any revenue gained from the address database, e.g. from 
> the sale of the database to the private sector ?   if so what 
> percentage of the expenditure can they recover ?
>
> 8) how to convince top management that this is a necessary 
> infrastructure and the government should invest in this infrastructure 
> for the benefit of the government and the entire community ?
>
> 9) what applications are doing or planning to do address validation 
> base on the address database ?
>
> 10) apart from enabling address validation, are they any other usage 
> of the address database ?
>
> Thanks in advance for your valuable information.
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Thomas
>