The digital platform for planning, prioritisation, and monitoring of humanitarian demining, GRIT, was presented during the Demine Ukraine Forum 3:0, held on 5 December in Kyiv. Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine Ihor Bezkaravainyi explained which data the platform operates on, what tasks it can already perform, and how it will be integrated into mine action processes.

“Ukrainian experts and researchers in ecology, economics, social sciences, geoinformation systems, and data engineering are working on the development of GRIT. With AI tools, powerful infrastructure for building analytical models, and a solid understanding of mathematics and logic, they can answer a vast number of questions regarding the current condition of territories and their future development. All the necessary information is provided in convenient formats, allowing users to compare areas and track dynamics,” said Ihor Bezkaravainyi.

The GRIT platform creates a digital twin of each land plot and uses analytical models to generate well-grounded decisions based on real and up-to-date data. During the presentation, Ihor Bezkaravainyi demonstrated one example of analytical scenarios: a single polygon of a potentially contaminated area of about 6 hectares can block 137 cadastral plots with a total area of more than 200 hectares. Landowners do not cultivate their plots because part of the land may contain remnants of war. Therefore, prioritising the clearance of just one polygon would allow 200 hectares to return to use and economic activity to resume on this land.

Another example of analytics the system is capable of is identifying priority potentially contaminated areas located within a 5-kilometre radius of schools where most students attend classes in person. This is essential for the safety of both teachers and children.

“For the government, the GRIT platform is an opportunity to shape national demining and territory recovery policy with high quality, relying on the most up-to-date data. Communities can use the platform for optimal development, reconstruction, and land use after clearance. Businesses may be interested in receiving a digital profile of the land plot where they plan their activities, and mine action operators — in soil and land-cover maps, and in the results of satellite imagery analysis for more effective planning,” said Ihor Bezkaravainyi.

In the current demining process, GRIT is planned to be integrated at the stage of creating annual demining plans. Verified data enables planning the clearance of exactly those territories where it will have the greatest impact.

Background: GRIT (Ground Rehabilitation through Innovation Technologies) is a digital platform for planning, prioritisation, and monitoring of humanitarian demining, operating on the technology of tech giant Palantir. At present, the platform uses more than 20 datasets from state and commercial registries, satellite data, and data from mine action operators, and plans to expand its capabilities further next year.