elisaxchen/nvdi-wealth-rwanda

This is the final project for the large-scale computing class I took in 2022. I use daytime satellite images, nightlight, and NDVI (Vegetation Index) to predict wealth in Rwanda. # final-project-rwanda ### Using Daytime Satellite Images, Nightlight, and NDVI to Predict Wealth: A Case Study in Rwanda ### I. Introduction Satellite images are increasingly leveraged by social scientists to estimate economic activities in developing countries, where administrative neighborhood level data are often not reliable or simply do not exist. However, what information we'd like to extract from satellite image data can best predict wealth is contentious. The most commonly used one is nightlights satellite image, as it can capture the usage of light at night, which approximately indicates the level of development across regions. For example, in areas mired in conflict or extreme poverty, the nightlight satellite images will show more dark patches. However, this approach is less useful when it comes to estimating the variation of economic development within a low-income country. How can we find the poorest area in a country where there's not so much nightlight? This is a critical question but there it not much written on it. Of the little there is, the paper published in Science that combines daytime satellite imagery with nightlights and survey data, exploiting CNN to identify image features to estimate consumption expenditure in Africa is a highlight (Jean et al., 2016). This project seeks to replicate and extend their main findings. In particular, I plan to investigate the possibility of using a variety of satellite images, including nightlights, daytime images, and NDVI, the vegetation index to predict wealth at the neighborhood level in Rwanda, using large-scale computing methods. The examination of using NDVI to estimate economy activities is of particular interest for this project, because the relationship between economic development and the preservation of greenspace is not always straightforward, especially in low-income countries like Rwanda. On the one hand, the establishment of basic urban infrastructure, a symbol of burgeoning economy, is …