Evaluating the practical usability of the ISO 19157 geographical data quality standard in the South African context

Geographic information plays an increasingly critical role in supporting decision-making across a wide range of sectors, including environmental management, economic development, social planning, and political governance. To ensure the reliability and usefulness of geographic data, international standards such as ISO 19157 provide frameworks for assessing geographic data quality. However, their practical application and usability remain underexplored, particularly in the South African context. This study evaluates the usability of ISO 19157 through a questionnaire-based approach involving key stakeholders, including data producers, users, and custodians. A total of 54 participants assessed the standard across five usability dimensions: accessibility, effectiveness, efficiency, satisfaction, and learnability. Findings indicate that although the standard is conceptually robust and valued for improving data completeness, consistency, and metadata practices, its implementation faces several challenges. These include limited awareness, restricted access, technical complexity, and insufficient training. The average usability score was 3.4 out of 5. Among participants with access to the standard, the score increased to 3.8, highlighting accessibility as a critical determinant of usability. The study recommends enhanced dissemination of the standard, targeted capacity-building initiatives, and user-friendly implementation tools to support broader adoption. These measures are essential for enhancing geographic data quality and spatial data governance in South Africa.