To pay or not to pay: Access to spatial data from user perspective

User access to geographic data has never been a straightforward process, not because the problem is technologically intractable but rather due to the matter of having appropriate funding models in place. Since the proponents of both free access and paid access pricing models put forward equally viable arguments, policymakers are left undecided about which funding model to choose. Going beyond whether users should pay for geographic data produced by government establishments, this assessment of Rwanda contributes to the age-long debate by examining the willingness of users themselves to pay. The results show that a user’s willingness to pay for geographic data is not determined hedonically. Instead, the most influencing factor is the organisation’s particular area of focus; willingness varies depending on whether the activities are commercial, humanitarian or educational in outlook or mandated legally such as is the case for government institutions.