55 
For example in China, despite good quality 1:10 000 
conventional topographical maps covering most of the populated —- 
recrions, and the rulincr communist system which does not recognize 
u J c,o\ 
individually owned land, the lack of cadastral maps and other 
information contained in cadastre makes rational and efficient 
land administration and development impossible. With a 
population exceeding 1 100 000 000 (over 80% in agriculture), the ~ 
population density surpasses all imagination. The congestion of ■. 
dwellings in urban areas and villages, combined with an QW 
exceptionally low standard of living, make China a particularly 
complex case. A solution can only be found by a novel approach QC 
using efficient and economic photogrammetric methods outside the 
urban areas. This would provide a workable basis for the usual . 
cadastral field work. ’ Any conventional last century approach, f 
as is being advocated by some invited European "experts", is 
ludicrous. Throwing in the notion of "computer supported 
cadastral mapping" displays basic ignorance and further detracts 
attention from the real issues and problems. The present _. r 
political turmoil in China compounds the critical situation and QO 
removes from sight an urgently needed solution. But we must 7 a 
remember that here we are talking about 25% of the total world 
population in a country proud of its past and its unique 
achievements. 
no 
No better, in the context of the present discussion, is the' mo 
situation in other Asiatic countries. Because of the chaos in 
our field they are seriously hampered in their efforts to achieve 
some progress in economic and social domains, re 
on 
Revolting examples of deficiencies in the field of our 
responsibility are encountered everywhere on the African w 
Continent. Recently I was invited by a local UN agency to study 0 b 
the situation in our field in seven countries belonging to the S p 
so-called Subregion of Eastern and Southern Africa. The th 
subregion covers an area of about 6 500 000 km 2 and have a 
population of about 140 000 000. The percentage of the 
population living from the land varies from 71% to" 84%! The 
average land use in the region is: Q% arable land, 26% forests co 
and woodland and 66% remaining land. These figures alone point I 
to a formidable socio-economic problems facing the region." The f 
few existing surveying departments at universities are in an m 
embrionic state, and despite a critical shortage of professional s 
surveyors the departments have difficulties in recruiting the T 
minimum number of students to justify their existence. In these p 
huge countries the total number of "professional" surveyors d 
rarely exceeds a very few persons. But even they are k 
underemployed and lead an obviously miserable life. This, I w] 
assure you, is an honest description of the "scientific" and d 
"professional" status of cur discipline on tnis huge continent. m 
This sad description could also be representative of other areas a 
oi the world. As a result, I was told in various countries that m 
businessmen who were ready to invest capital in the establishment