Geospatial information for sustainable food systems

Cropland category map of the Gaza Strip from February–May 2023

Year published: 12/06/2024

FAO and UNOSAT have conducted a series of geospatial assessments of agricultural land and infrastructure to assess damage due to the conflict in the Gaza Strip. Cropland category maps will facilitate assessments of damage to key agricultural sectors and inform rehabilitation strategies. WorldView2 very-high resolution multispectral (2m) and panchromatic (0.5m) satellite imagery and Sentinel-2 (10m) multispectral monthly imagery from February-May 2023 were used. 539 training data points were collected, identifying crops based on NDVI profiles, crop calendars, and WorldView-2 imagery. An accuracy assessment was conducted using 30 percent of the samples to validate the map. The cropland category map achieved an overall accuracy rate of 72 percent.