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Core principles
W4A separates observation, interpretation, prediction, uncertainty and validation. Missing data are never presented as evidence of groundwater absence, and model outputs are not presented as measured truth.
Provenance
Every scientific record should retain its source, contributor or institution, collection date, method, processing history, version, access conditions and review status wherever applicable.
Verification
Community-reported, expert-reviewed, field-verified and imported evidence are distinguishable. Verification does not automatically imply canonical promotion or public release.
Visibility and coordinates
Public, partner/research and restricted visibility are separate access states. Exact locations and sensitive technical measurements remain controlled unless an explicit publication rule authorizes release.
Licensing and reuse
Datasets must declare an access condition and licence or a documented reason why reuse is restricted. Open release requires a compatible approved licence and publication review.
Quality control
Automatic checks and human review are complementary. Quality flags, corrections, clarification requests and publication decisions are recorded rather than hidden.
Corrections and versioning
Scientific data should not be silently overwritten. Material corrections should preserve lineage, review history and the relationship between raw, harmonized and published forms.
Responsible use
Users remain responsible for interpreting uncertainty, local conditions and limitations. W4A decision support is evidence for professional judgment, not an unconditional instruction to drill or invest.
Data-governance baseline prepared for WATER4ALL-Africa v0.9.0 and subject to institutional review before production launch.
See also: Privacy notice