IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/arx/papers/1712.02282.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

On monitoring development indicators using high resolution satellite images

Author

Listed:
  • Potnuru Kishen Suraj
  • Ankesh Gupta
  • Makkunda Sharma
  • Sourabh Bikas Paul
  • Subhashis Banerjee

Abstract

We develop a machine learning based tool for accurate prediction of socio-economic indicators from daytime satellite imagery. The diverse set of indicators are often not intuitively related to observable features in satellite images, and are not even always well correlated with each other. Our predictive tool is more accurate than using night light as a proxy, and can be used to predict missing data, smooth out noise in surveys, monitor development progress of a region, and flag potential anomalies. Finally, we use predicted variables to do robustness analysis of a regression study of high rate of stunting in India.

Suggested Citation

  • Potnuru Kishen Suraj & Ankesh Gupta & Makkunda Sharma & Sourabh Bikas Paul & Subhashis Banerjee, 2017. "On monitoring development indicators using high resolution satellite images," Papers 1712.02282, arXiv.org, revised Jun 2018.
    • Handle: RePEc:arx:papers:1712.02282
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1712.02282
    File Function: Latest version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gibbons, Steve & Overman, Henry G. & Patacchini, Eleonora, 2015. "Spatial Methods," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: Gilles Duranton & J. V. Henderson & William C. Strange (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 115-168, Elsevier.
    2. Tomoki Fujii & Roy van der Weide, 2020. "Is Predicted Data a Viable Alternative to Real Data?," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 34(2), pages 485-508.
    3. Jon Kleinberg & Jens Ludwig & Sendhil Mullainathan & Ziad Obermeyer, 2015. "Prediction Policy Problems," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(5), pages 491-495, May.
    4. Susan Athey & Guido W. Imbens, 2017. "The State of Applied Econometrics: Causality and Policy Evaluation," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 31(2), pages 3-32, Spring.
    5. Sendhil Mullainathan & Jann Spiess, 2017. "Machine Learning: An Applied Econometric Approach," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 31(2), pages 87-106, Spring.
    6. Ministry of Finance, Government of India,, 2017. "Economic Survey 2016-17," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, edition 2, number 9780199477661.
    7. Robin Burgess & Matthew Hansen & Benjamin A. Olken & Peter Potapov & Stefanie Sieber, 2012. "The Political Economy of Deforestation in the Tropics," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 127(4), pages 1707-1754.
    8. Arnaud Costinot & Dave Donaldson & Cory Smith, 2016. "Evolving Comparative Advantage and the Impact of Climate Change in Agricultural Markets: Evidence from 1.7 Million Fields around the World," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 124(1), pages 205-248.
    9. Tilottama Ghosh & Sharolyn J. Anderson & Christopher D. Elvidge & Paul C. Sutton, 2013. "Using Nighttime Satellite Imagery as a Proxy Measure of Human Well-Being," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 5(12), pages 1-32, November.
    10. Sam Asher & Paul Novosad, 2017. "Politics and Local Economic Growth: Evidence from India," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 9(1), pages 229-273, January.
    11. Barreto,Humberto & Howland,Frank, 2006. "Introductory Econometrics," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521843195.
    12. Benjamin Marx & Thomas M. Stoker & Tavneet Suri, 2019. "There Is No Free House: Ethnic Patronage in a Kenyan Slum," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 11(4), pages 36-70, October.
    13. Hal R. Varian, 2014. "Big Data: New Tricks for Econometrics," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 28(2), pages 3-28, Spring.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Max Vilgalys, 2023. "A Machine Learning Approach to Measuring Climate Adaptation," Papers 2302.01236, arXiv.org.
    2. de Blasio, Guido & D'Ignazio, Alessio & Letta, Marco, 2022. "Gotham city. Predicting ‘corrupted’ municipalities with machine learning," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    3. Fabio Pammolli & Paolo Bonaretti & Massimo Riccaboni & Valentina Tortolini, 2019. "Quali Regole per la Spesa Farmaceutica? - Criticità, Impatti, Proposte," Working Papers CERM 01-2019, Competitività, Regole, Mercati (CERM).
    4. Monica Andini & Emanuele Ciani & Guido de Blasio & Alessio D'Ignazio & Viola Salvestrini, 2017. "Targeting policy-compliers with machine learning: an application to a tax rebate programme in Italy," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 1158, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    5. Susan Athey, 2018. "The Impact of Machine Learning on Economics," NBER Chapters, in: The Economics of Artificial Intelligence: An Agenda, pages 507-547, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Andini, Monica & Ciani, Emanuele & de Blasio, Guido & D'Ignazio, Alessio & Salvestrini, Viola, 2018. "Targeting with machine learning: An application to a tax rebate program in Italy," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 156(C), pages 86-102.
    7. Guido de Blasio & Alessio D'Ignazio & Marco Letta, 2020. "Predicting Corruption Crimes with Machine Learning. A Study for the Italian Municipalities," Working Papers 16/20, Sapienza University of Rome, DISS.
    8. Sophie-Charlotte Klose & Johannes Lederer, 2020. "A Pipeline for Variable Selection and False Discovery Rate Control With an Application in Labor Economics," Papers 2006.12296, arXiv.org, revised Jun 2020.
    9. Erik Heilmann & Janosch Henze & Heike Wetzel, 2021. "Machine learning in energy forecasts with an application to high frequency electricity consumption data," MAGKS Papers on Economics 202135, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    10. Giovanni Di Franco & Michele Santurro, 2021. "Machine learning, artificial neural networks and social research," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 1007-1025, June.
    11. Galdo, Virgilio & Li, Yue & Rama, Martin, 2021. "Identifying urban areas by combining human judgment and machine learning: An application to India," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    12. Isil Erel & Léa H Stern & Chenhao Tan & Michael S Weisbach, 2021. "Selecting Directors Using Machine Learning," NBER Chapters, in: Big Data: Long-Term Implications for Financial Markets and Firms, pages 3226-3264, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Abrell, Jan & Kosch, Mirjam & Rausch, Sebastian, 2022. "How effective is carbon pricing?—A machine learning approach to policy evaluation," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    14. de Lucio, Juan, 2021. "Estimación adelantada del crecimiento regional mediante redes neuronales LSTM," INVESTIGACIONES REGIONALES - Journal of REGIONAL RESEARCH, Asociación Española de Ciencia Regional, issue 49, pages 45-64.
    15. Filmer,Deon P. & Nahata,Vatsal & Sabarwal,Shwetlena, 2021. "Preparation, Practice, and Beliefs : A Machine Learning Approach to Understanding Teacher Effectiveness," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9847, The World Bank.
    16. Simon Blöthner & Mario Larch, 2022. "Economic determinants of regional trade agreements revisited using machine learning," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 63(4), pages 1771-1807, October.
    17. Chakraborty, Chiranjit & Joseph, Andreas, 2017. "Machine learning at central banks," Bank of England working papers 674, Bank of England.
    18. McKenzie, David & Sansone, Dario, 2017. "Man vs. Machine in Predicting Successful Entrepreneurs: Evidence from a Business Plan Competition in Nigeria," CEPR Discussion Papers 12523, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    19. Francesco Decarolis & Cristina Giorgiantonio, 2020. "Corruption red flags in public procurement: new evidence from Italian calls for tenders," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 544, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    20. Yulin Liu & Luyao Zhang, 2022. "Cryptocurrency Valuation: An Explainable AI Approach," Papers 2201.12893, arXiv.org, revised Jul 2023.

    More about this item

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:arx:papers:1712.02282. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: arXiv administrators (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://arxiv.org/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.