A ceremony overseen by Anne-Marie IDRAC, Secretary of State for Foreign Trade, was organized last Thursday to commend the 12 winning French businesses.

IGN France International was awarded the Grand Paris Exportation Prize, by a prestigious jury composed of professionals coming from major international organisations (Ubifrance, in charge of the promotion of French companies abroad, Oseo, in charge of the financing of innovative projects, financial organisations…).

This award, given by the vice-president of the Paris Chamber of Commerce, rewards the company for its tremendous export results in 2008. A leading engineering company in geographic information, IGN France International works all around the world in various countries and offers its expertise for the elaboration of projects to French decision-makers working abroad or directly to foreign decision-makers.

Subsidiary of the French National geographic institute and entirely dedicated to export, IGN France International’s know-how is recognized worldwide in fields as diverse as geodesy, metrology, cartography, databases, geographic information systems or web portals, which form the core of its business activity. Indispensable element of all major projects linked to urban planning, sustainable urbanism, environment, infrastructures, mobility and many other sectors, geographic information contributes to the elaboration of decision-support and anticipation tools for States, local authorities, industrial groups and engineering companies.

In 2008, IGN France International finished the year with a record-breaking export turnover of 19.4M€. The major projects and references that contributed to this successful year are the following:

Sri Lanka • Post-Tsunami: Reconstruction aid The SIIRMS project (Spatial Information Infrastructures Reconstruction Monitoring), launched right after the tsunami that devastated Southeast Asia in 2004, aimed to provide Sri Lanka with up-to-date cartographic data and GIS solutions. These data provided the basis for the cartographic and GIS applications oriented toward the reconstruction and development of the urban zones classified as priorities. This project benefited from French financing. - Bangladesh • Experts’ assistance : improvement of the digital mapping system of the Survey of Bangladesh IGN France International carried out the improvement of the country’s digital mapping system, on behalf of the Survey of Bangladesh.

- Namibia • Development of the Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal solution In Namibia, IGN France International is currently providing the Directorate of Valuation Estate Management within the Ministry of Lands and resettlement, with the Cama solution adapted to the specific needs of the country, as well as the equipment necessary for the use of the software. Detailed training on how to make it work was provided to the users.

- Romania • Technical assistance for the elaboration of environmental maps and GIS Benefiting from European financing, this project has contributed to a better functioning of the Romanian Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development. The creation of environmental maps and databases will help it to monitor the evolution of the environmental situation. A dedicated GIS thematic portal containing the produced data has been set up. The Ministry staff also received a detailed training session.

IGN France International is the subsidiary of the French National geographic institute (IGN) and is entirely dedicated to export. Recognized worldwide for its know-how, IGN France International provides its expertise all around the world. www.ignfi.fr