Key Indicator Data System

Following a period of intense redevelopment, the first public KIDS-3g website has been released. You can see this KIDS-3g client at http://kids.fao.org/glipha/index.html. Work is currently underway to make KIDS-3g generally available. However, KIDS-2 will also continue to be supported.

Some of the new features of KIDS-3g include a more advanced GIS functionality that supports geo-features that change over time and multiple versions of geo-layers, as well as the possibility to support multiple sources of data. 

The new version of the KIDS data repository comprises a radical departure from previous versions in that it is based on a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), which means that services are distributed to users/applications according to their needs while individual users are no longer required to download and install their own instances of the application.

In KIDS-3g, distinct units or services are made accessible over a network in accordance with a SaaS (Software as a Service) concept and can be combined and reused to create ad hoc applications. For example, a Web Mapping Service is provided whereby OpenGIS Web Map Service Interface Standard (WMS) provides a simple HTTP interface for requesting geo-registered map images from one or more distributed geospatial databases.

In this way, scalable and virtualized resources are provided as a service over the internet (cloud computing) and accessed via an online application or web browser, while users need not have knowledge, expertise or indeed control over the technology infrastructure that underlies them. The software and data are stored on the servers, allowing different applications to exchange data with one another. This type of architecture moreover increases interoperability and reusability of the various modules, reducing maintenance costs and times.

KIDS-3g is based on OLAP (On Line Analytical Processing) design principles. We are now working on implementing a full OLAP engine to provide a way of slicing, dicing, drill-down, roll-up and calculation of derived data from a multi-dimensional cube stored in a data warehouse.

For more information about the services provided by KIDS-3g please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it