Does Africa need a space programme?

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Egypt on Tuesday launched its first government-owned communications satellite – Tiba-1 – into orbit, to support civil and military communication. The launch comes during the first coordination meeting of the ‘African Development Satellite Project’ in Cairo this week.

Egypt is home to the African Space Agency, established by the African Union in 2016, to help grow the continent’s nascent space industry. Eight countries including Nigeria, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda are attending the gathering.

As technology and innovation drive down costs, more countries are trying to get their space industry off the ground. Nineteen African countries have national space programmes, with the likes of Sudan and Kenya recently conducting their first ever satellite launches. Ethiopia is planning to send one into orbit next month.

On a continent often associated with more pressing development issues, it’s tempting to dismiss space exploration as a waste of money.

Not necessarily.

Satellites can help support development efforts through things like monitoring weather conditions, assisting security operations in conflict zones, and aiding disaster planning. Ethiopia, for example, hopes to use its satellite to support the agriculture sector.

It’s early days, but the industry is growing, with revenues of around $7 billion expected to hit $10 billion by 2024.

This report reflects the views of the author alone, not those of How we made it in Africa.


Today’s picks

From the continent

The African Development Bank has approved a $400 million loan to support the construction of an integrated liquefied natural gas plant in Mozambique. Billions are currently being poured into Mozambique to develop one of the world’s biggest untapped gas reserves. More: Independent Online

Tanzania has secured a $1 billion syndicated loan from the Burundi-based Trade and Development Bank to help fund infrastructure projects, with plans to borrow an additional $500 million. Tanzania is on an infrastructure investment drive, including plans to spend $14 billion on a new standard gauge railway network over five years. More: Reuters

The global perspective

Russia is reportedly looking to extend a $10 billion credit line to Angola to fund infrastructure projects, with a focus on the power sector. This comes amid growing efforts by Moscow to promote trade and investment with African economies. More: Macauhub

The UN has warned that the world must cut greenhouse gas emissions by 7.6% annually to meet the 2015 Paris climate deal’s goal of limiting global temperature rises to 1.5°C by the end of the century. It’s the latest warning about stalling progress, and comes ahead of a major annual UN climate conference in Madrid next week. More: New Scientist

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