Bridging the national data gap with Google earth engine and landsat imagery by developing annual land cover for Afghanistan

The national-level land cover database is essential to sustainable landscape management, environmental protection, and food security. In Afghanistan, the existing national-level land cover data from 1972, 1993, and 2010 relied on satellite data from diverse sensors adopted three different land cover classification systems. This inconsistent land cover map across the various years leads to the challenge of assessing landscape changes that are crucial for management efforts. To address this challenge, a 19-year national-level land cover dataset from 2000 to 2018 was developed for the first time to aid policy development, settlement planning, and the monitoring of forests and agriculture across time. In the development of the 19 year span of land cover data products, a state-of-the-art remote sensing approach, employing a harmonized classification scheme was implemented through the utilization of Google Earth Engine (GEE). Publicly accessible Landsat imagery and additional geospatial covariates were integrated to produce an annual land cover database for Afghanistan. The generated dataset bridges historical data gaps and facilitates robust land cover change information. The annual land cover database is now accessible through https://rds.icimod.org/. This repository ensures that the annual land cover data is readily available to all users interested in comprehending the dynamic land cover changes happening in Afghanistan.