The Nigerian GIS specialist and urban planning analyst has won the 2024 African Geospatial Technology Innovation Award, selected from four nominees, recognising his work that connects spatial intelligence with planning, regulation, emergency response, and environmental risk.
Mr. Kayode Adeparusi has been named the winner of the African Geospatial Technology Innovation Award 2024 at the Africa Innovators International Awards, emerging as the sole recipient in a category that brought together four nominees.
The recognition places attention on a field that is often less visible than consumer technology but increasingly important to how cities are planned, regulated and protected: geospatial technology. Adeparusi’s work sits at the intersection of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), spatial analytics and urban planning, with applications spanning regulatory planning, development control, emergency-response navigation and environmental risk modelling.
His selection is significant not simply because of his professional specialisation, but because much of his work has involved applying location-based data to practical institutional and public-interest problems. In one of the clearest examples, his GIS contribution within a statutory planning authority was associated with a reported 60% improvement in workflow efficiency across a regulatory planning system handling approximately 37,000 permits.
That combination of measurable operational impact, applied spatial analysis and scholarly work provides the substance behind the award.
The work behind the recognition
GIS is often understood simply as a technology for creating maps. In practice, its value extends considerably further. When geographic information is combined with administrative records, satellite imagery, infrastructure data, environmental information and analytical models, it can help institutions understand where problems are occurring, how different factors interact and where decisions should be prioritised.
That distinction is central to Adeparusi’s professional record.
A 2021 profile by Tribune Online documented his work with the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority, where he contributed to the technical planning framework supporting development assessment and land-use regulation. The report described the role of geospatial intelligence in an environment where planning authorities must process large volumes of applications while considering zoning, development control and environmental factors.
His subsequent research has continued to explore similar questions from different angles. His published work covers emergency mapping, flood susceptibility, planning compliance, GIS capacity building and the use of spatial analysis in decision-making. His publicly available research profile lists 11 publications and identifies spatial analysis, mapping and geoprocessing among his areas of expertise.
The common thread is practical application. The maps are not the end product. The objective is better information for decisions.
What 37,000 permits say about the value of GIS
One of the strongest measures associated with Adeparusi’s professional work is the reported 60% improvement in workflow efficiency within a regulatory planning system handling approximately 37,000 permits.
The figure matters because regulatory planning is fundamentally a coordination problem. Authorities must examine applications, establish whether proposed developments comply with planning requirements, verify spatial information and make decisions within systems that can involve large volumes of data.
GIS can make that process more structured by bringing spatial information into the decision-making environment.
For a planning authority, the difference between a conventional record and a spatially enabled record can be substantial. A permit application is not merely a document. It relates to a particular parcel, road network, neighbourhood, zoning designation, development pattern and surrounding environment.
When those relationships can be viewed and analysed spatially, planning officials have another layer of information with which to assess development proposals.
Adeparusi’s work in this environment illustrates why geospatial technology has become increasingly relevant to public-sector administration. The reported efficiency improvement is not a claim that GIS alone solves regulatory challenges. Rather, it demonstrates the practical value of integrating spatial intelligence into a system operating at significant administrative scale.
That is also consistent with the broader reporting on his work in Lagos, where GIS was linked to development assessment, land-use regulation and the management of planning information.
From mapping to decision-making
The more important shift in Adeparusi’s work is therefore from mapping to decision support.
His experience applying GIS and spatial intelligence to zoning compliance and development regulation places geospatial technology directly within the governance process.
For rapidly developing cities, zoning is not an abstract technical exercise. It influences what can be built, where development takes place and how land uses interact with roads, infrastructure and surrounding communities. Spatial analysis can help planners identify patterns that may not be obvious when information is considered only through conventional administrative records.
Adeparusi’s research has also examined land-use change and planning compliance in Lagos. His research profile describes a study examining changes in land use and the spatial and institutional factors associated with zoning non-compliance.
This is where geospatial technology becomes particularly relevant to African urban development. Cities are growing, land uses are changing and planning institutions must make decisions with incomplete, changing and sometimes fragmented information.
The ability to analyse those changes spatially does not replace professional judgement. It gives planners another evidence base from which to exercise it.
Geospatial technology and public safety
Another part of Adeparusi’s work extends into emergency-response navigation.
Location is fundamental to emergency response. Knowing where an incident occurred, where responders are located, which routes are available and how quickly a facility can be reached can influence the quality of an emergency response.
Adeparusi has researched interactive web maps designed for responder training and public awareness. The study examined how GIS-based interactive mapping could support comprehension, situational awareness and decision-making in simulated emergency scenarios, including hazardous-material incidents, severe weather events and active-response situations.
His later research has also examined access to emergency care and Next Generation 911 systems in rural Illinois, using geospatial network analysis and service-area methods to evaluate spatial and temporal access to trauma and urgent-care facilities.
These studies show a continuing interest in how location intelligence can be applied to emergency systems.
It is important not to overstate what such research proves. It does not establish that Adeparusi personally improved outcomes in every emergency system he has studied. What it does demonstrate is a sustained application of geospatial analysis to problems where location, accessibility and response time are central considerations.
That is a meaningful extension of GIS beyond conventional planning.
Mapping flood risk in vulnerable urban environments
Environmental risk provides another dimension to his work.
Adeparusi’s research on urban flood susceptibility in Lagos uses a multi-criteria decision analysis approach to identify areas that may be more susceptible to flooding. The study considers factors including elevation, land cover, soil type, drainage density, rainfall and population distribution, integrating those variables within a GIS framework.
The research is particularly relevant to Lagos, where the interaction between dense development, drainage conditions, low-lying areas and environmental pressures makes spatial understanding important to urban management.
The value of this kind of analysis is not that a map can prevent flooding by itself. Its value is that it can help identify spatial patterns of vulnerability and provide information that can support planning, infrastructure decisions and risk assessment.
This illustrates another feature of Adeparusi’s professional approach: using geospatial technology to understand relationships between people, infrastructure and the physical environment.
For African cities facing development pressures and environmental risks, that capability has practical relevance.
A research record beyond professional practice
The award recognition also reflects a body of scholarly work that extends beyond workplace implementation.
According to the profile supplied for the 2024 recognition, Adeparusi produced 11 peer-reviewed scholarly publications in under three years, with more than 620 Google Scholar citations and more than 652 ResearchGate citations.
His publicly available research profile confirms a publication record spanning topics including emergency care, indoor emergency routing, flood susceptibility, land-use planning compliance, GIS training and environmental resilience.
His publications also provide concrete examples of the range of questions he has examined.
In 2024, for example, he published research on the impact of targeted GIS training on NGO field operations. The study examined how structured GIS training could affect data accuracy, completeness and collection efficiency in health-related field operations.
Another 2024 paper examined flood susceptibility in Lagos using multi-criteria decision analysis.
Together, the publications show a professional interest that crosses several applications of spatial intelligence, rather than concentrating on a single narrow use of GIS.
Trusted to review other researchers’ work
Adeparusi’s role in scholarly peer review adds another dimension to the profile.
The information submitted for the award records 20 completed international peer reviews, including reviews for three Q1-ranked Elsevier journals.
Peer review is an important part of academic publishing because researchers and journal editors rely on qualified specialists to assess whether submitted work meets appropriate standards of methodology, relevance and scholarly quality.
Being invited to undertake such reviews is therefore evidence that a researcher’s expertise has been recognised by academic publishing processes beyond their own publications.
It should not be treated as proof of superiority in itself. But alongside a publication record and applied professional work, it provides another indication that Adeparusi’s knowledge has relevance beyond his immediate workplace.
His research network also includes scholars working in spatial analysis, mapping and related geographic sciences, according to his publicly available research profile.
Recognition beyond one institution
Adeparusi’s work has also attracted independent media attention.
The award profile records eight independently authored media profiles across five national and international outlets over approximately five years. One example is the 2021 Tribune Online profile examining his contribution to spatial intelligence and Lagos planning operations.
This kind of third-party recognition matters because it places his work in a wider professional conversation.
The public record also shows an expanding research profile. His work has appeared in journals covering environmental and earth sciences, GIS capacity building and emergency response.
Taken together, the professional, academic and media records provide different forms of external visibility. None needs to stand alone as proof of impact. Their significance comes from the broader pattern.
Why the Africa Innovators award fits
The African Geospatial Technology Innovation Award 2024 is therefore closely aligned with the substance of Adeparusi’s work.
His professional contribution can be viewed through several connected layers.
At the regulatory level, GIS has been applied to planning operations, zoning compliance and development control. The reported 60% improvement in workflow efficiency across a system handling approximately 37,000 permits provides a concrete measure of operational relevance.
At the urban-planning level, spatial intelligence provides a way of examining land use and development patterns.
At the public-safety level, his work has explored emergency-response navigation, interactive mapping and access to emergency care.
At the environmental level, his flood-risk research demonstrates how multiple geographic variables can be combined to assess vulnerability.
At the scholarly level, his publications and peer-review activity show engagement with a wider community of researchers working on geospatial and related questions.
That combination is important.
The award is not simply recognition for knowing how to use GIS software. It acknowledges the application of geospatial thinking to systems where decisions have practical consequences.
What the recognition says about African innovation
There is a tendency to discuss African technology primarily through startups, fintech platforms, mobile applications and venture-backed companies. Those areas remain important, but they are only part of the continent’s innovation landscape.
Geospatial technology represents another layer of African technological development, one that intersects with government, infrastructure, urban planning, environmental management and public safety.
For cities and institutions managing increasingly complex spatial problems, the ability to collect, analyse and interpret geographic information can influence how decisions are made.
Adeparusi’s career illustrates this less visible side of technological innovation. His work has connected technical GIS skills with the operational realities of planning authorities, the analytical demands of environmental modelling and the information requirements of emergency-response systems.
His research record extends that work into scholarly investigation, allowing practical problems to become subjects of formal analysis.
That is particularly relevant for African urban environments, where planning and environmental challenges are often spatial by nature. Where development occurs, how land is used, which communities face particular risks and how quickly services can reach people are all questions with geographic dimensions.
A recognition grounded in applied expertise
Winning the African Geospatial Technology Innovation Award 2024 gives formal recognition to a body of work that has developed across professional practice, applied research and academic contribution.
From the reported efficiency gains associated with a large regulatory planning system to research on flood susceptibility and emergency response, Adeparusi’s record demonstrates a consistent focus on using spatial information to understand and improve real-world systems.
His recognition among four nominees in the category also places his work within a competitive field of geospatial innovation. As the sole recipient recognised in the category at the 2024 ceremony, the award provides a distinct acknowledgement of the relevance of his contribution.
The significance of the recognition ultimately rests on what sits behind the award: measurable operational work, applied spatial analysis, environmental research, emergency-response studies, scholarly publications and participation in international peer review.
For Africa Innovators, that makes the award more than a celebration of professional credentials. It is recognition of how geospatial expertise can be applied to the practical questions that shape cities and institutions.
As African governments and urban systems increasingly rely on data to guide planning, regulation, infrastructure and risk management, professionals who can translate geographic information into usable intelligence will have an important role to play.
Kayode Adeparusi’s work offers one example of that contribution. His African Geospatial Technology Innovation Award 2024 recognises not simply the discipline he works in, but the practical use of that discipline across planning, public-sector efficiency, emergency response, environmental risk and knowledge creation.
