State of the Map Africa 2026 Highlights Africa's Growing Open Mapping Movement

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania | June 2026 – Geospatial professionals, OpenStreetMap contributors, researchers, students, and policymakers from across the continent gathered in Dar es Salaam for State of the Map (SotM) Africa 2026, one of Africa's leading conferences on open mapping and geospatial innovation.

The conference showcased how open geospatial data is transforming disaster management, urban planning, climate resilience, humanitarian response, and sustainable development. Through keynote sessions, technical talks, workshops, and mapathons, participants shared practical applications of OpenStreetMap and explored emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, to improve mapping accuracy and accessibility.

A major focus of the event was strengthening collaboration between governments, academia, humanitarian organisations, and local mapping communities to expand the use of open geographic data across Africa.

The conference also honoured the legacy of Tanzanian OpenStreetMap leader Iddy Chazua through the launch of the Iddy Chazua Memorial Fellowship, which supports young and underrepresented mappers in attending future State of the Map Africa events.

As the conference concluded, attendees reaffirmed their commitment to building more inclusive, accurate, and accessible geospatial data, reinforcing Africa's growing role in shaping the future of open mapping.