The FIVIMS Secretariat, under the close co-operation with all involved government institutions and NGOs, assemble, analyse and disseminate through various forms of reports, information on food insecurity and vulnerability including those who are vulnerable or at risk of becoming food insecure.

Data Sources And Collection

The national FIVIMS Secretariat is able to receive data from national and provincial departments of involved sectors, UN, IOs, NGOs and private companies. All of the above organizations are the data collectors and can play vital roles in the process of providing and sharing information related to food insecurity and vulnerability. They can provide the information needed for effecient operation of FIVIMS. Main information providers are the MAFF, the MOP, the MOH, the MOWVA, the MOWRAM, the MOEYS, the MRD, WFP, CARE, OXFAM-Great Britain, HEKS, UNICEF, the CDHS, the CSES and other special surveys. Therefore, development of an appropriate mechanism for information providers has been a major challenge for FIVIMS.
Data and various information on FIVIMS are collected and maintained in a database by the Core Analyst Group. Timing of data collection depends on types, frequency and availability of data needed - e.g. yearly, seasonal, one every two years etc.

FIVIMS Database And Data Management

Development of a FIVIMS database is necessary. The information gathered by the members of the Core Analyst Group and the national FIVIMS Secretariat from respective line ministries, private and international organizations and NGOs are collated and stored in a FIVIMS master database based on MS- Access. In the relational database, data and information are maintained in an organized manner for easy retrieval and further statistical analysis. For this purpose, FIVIMS adopts administrative area codes developed by the MOP, which are commonly used by other governmental agencies, to store and maintain time series tabular data - e.g. provincial, district, commune and village level data.

Digital administrative boundary maps maintained for FIVIMS also utilise the same codes to match both tabular and map together for further operationa and analysis. Ditigal maps are maintained in Arc View Shape and/or MapInfo Tab formats being linked to Access based relational databse. This facilitates easy data access and retrieval by system users, statistical analysis by using the ADDATI statistical analysis package, and uploading the data onto an online FIVIMS data dissemination system that is currently under development based on the Key Indicator Data System (KIDS) architecture.

The Cambodia KIDS will permit the FIVIMS TSC members and/or Secretariat staff to update and maintain data by using any Internet Browser and disseminate the information through either the world wide web or CD-ROMs. It can be also linked with Regional and Global KIDS for sharing FIVIMS information with the wider audience.

In 2002 the first KIDS application was developed jointly by the FAO World Agricultural Information Center (WAICENT) and the Asia FIVIMS Project as a contribution to FIVIMS. It allows system users to browser FIVIMS indicator data for the Asia region with dynamic mapping, charting and graphing capabilities (www.asiafivims.net). It is an itnernationally comparable database of key indicators making it easier to combine data from different agencies and examine causal relationships between demographic, economic, environmental, and other key indicator groups. Later, the beta version of national KIDS for Thai and Philippine FIVIMS were uploaded, and the on-line data management functions beccame available.

The KIDS technologies have since been adopted by IAWG-FIVIMS agencies e.g. The WHO Global Database on Boby Mass Index (www.who.int/bmi/index.jsp) and a member of FAO websites including The Global Livestock Production and Health Atlas (www.fao.org/ag/aga/glipha/index.jsp) and The Terrestial Ecosystem Monitoring Site (www.fao.org/gtos/tems/maps.jsp). The same technologies will be adopted in Cambodia.

Sample Cambodia KIDS pages showing the percentage of households using iodized salt.