Africa in Space, Part 2: AfSA, National Space Agencies, and Challenges to Development

Today, Africa’s presence in space is growing: more than 60 African satellites are currently in orbit, the African Space Agency (AfSA) was officially established in January 2023, and, by 2026, the space industry’s value could reach $22.6 billion, according to the consulting firm Space in Africa.  

Tidiane Ouattara, president of the African Space Council, which oversees AfSA’s activities, calls these changes “a huge opportunity.” According to a report by the World Economic Forum, improved Earth observation made possible by satellite monitoring could bring the continent more than $2 billion and enhance socio-economic conditions there. Space-based weather forecasts have already helped reduce fatalities among fishermen. When satellite imagery detects flooding in Egypt, relevant services can more promptly respond to prevent environmental disasters.  

Additionally, satellites can improve connectivity across the continent, where less than half the population has access to broadband internet. While challenges such as access to clean water and food security remain unresolved, the advancement of space technologies could serve as a catalyst for innovation in other industries and improve the quality of life for tens of millions of people.

According to experts, the creation of AfSA will support the further expansion of space initiatives in Africa. Without competing with national agencies, it will develop a regulatory framework and centrally coordinate space activities. The consolidation of joint efforts made possible by AfSA is expected to simplify Africa’s collaboration with international partners such as the European Space Agency (ESA), eliminating the need for them to sign agreements with individual countries.  

At the same time, hundreds of NewSpace companies, most of them startups, are contributing to regional development by advancing satellite systems, spacecraft propulsion, and technologies used for Earth observation, positioning, and navigation.

How is Africa’s space industry currently developing?

Most space agencies in Africa were established in the past 20 years, and Africa’s first satellite was the Egyptian communications satellite NileSat 101, which was launched with the help of ESA in April 1998. Egypt launched its first Earth observation satellite, EgyptSat-1, nine years later. In 2018, Egypt formed the Egyptian Space Agency (EgSA), which, in addition to managing satellites (13 as of late 2024), actively promotes STEM education in the region.  

Currently, Egypt, along with Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda, is focusing on climate change research and plans to launch another satellite, SPINX, into orbit in 2025. Shortly, construction will also begin on Cairo’s first commercial aerospace company, in partnership with USPACE, which will provide engineering solutions for satellite development and testing.  

Fifteen African countries have already invested more than $4.71 billion in satellite development and construction. They plan to develop 105 more satellites between 2023 and 2026, despite having previously launched only between three and five per year before 2025. Among the latest launches are Senegal’s first environmental monitoring satellite, Gaindesat-1A (August 16, 2024), Zimbabwe’s second satellite, ZimSat-2 (November 5, 2024), for multispectral imaging in agriculture, and Djibouti’s second satellite, Djibouti-1B (December 21, 2024), for climate and water resource monitoring. Thanks to Senegal, the number of African countries with their own Earth observation satellites increased to 12 in 2024.

Although the Rwandan Space Agency (RSA) was established relatively recently, in 2021, the country actually launched its first two satellites two years earlier: the CubeSat RwaSat-1 and Icyerekezo. The first is designed for monitoring water resources, natural disasters, and agricultural data collection, while the second provides high-speed internet access to Rwandan schools in remote areas.  

For its part, Kenya launched its first Earth observation satellite, Taifa-1, in April 2023. It was designed and developed by Kenyans, but production was entirely handled by the Bulgarian company EnduroSat AD. In November 2024, it was announced that the Italian space center in Kenya would resume launching rockets carrying low-orbit microsatellites from a sea-based launch platform.

The launch of Botswana’s first satellite, BotSat-1, is scheduled for the first half of 2025. Equipped with a hyperspectral camera, it will provide the country with essential data to support its mining and agricultural industries.  

Nigeria is also developing four new satellites and aims to become a leader in Africa’s aerospace sector. These satellites will be used for monitoring and data collection in precision agriculture, as well as for defense and the oil and gas industry.

Challenges facing the African space industry 

The colonial legacy has had a strong influence on development and resource allocation priorities in African countries. For many years, governments showed little interest in space exploration, instead focusing on economic recovery and addressing social inequality on the continent. As a result, Africa still faces a number of challenges as it pursues space exploration.

Lack of funding

Spending in the African space sector is still dwarfed by the budgets of developed countries, and funding clearly remains one of the primary obstacles to Africa achieving space independence. The difference in budget allocations for space programs is visible:

In 2024, African countries allocated more than $465 million for their national space programs, a 27.86% decrease compared to the previous year. This decline is partly due to the depreciation of local currencies over this period. From 2018 to 2024, governments spent a total of $3.1 billion on space programs, excluding the costs of purchasing large communications satellites and contributions from international partners.  

International projects help to partially address funding challenges by attracting not only additional investments but also the technology and expertise needed to support Africa’s space industry. AfSA plays a key role in fostering global partnerships, though some African states had already begun cooperating internationally before the agency’s formation. By the beginning of the current decade, more than half of the countries in Africa had signed or ratified the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. However, most other international space agreements were concluded after 2020.  

Japan has been assisting Rwanda in using space for its broader socio-economic development, while Egypt’s space agency has secured support from Azerbaijan and China to expand its satellite network and increase manufacturing and testing capabilities. There are also examples of intra-African space cooperation, such as an agreement between Ghana’s Institute of Space Science and Technology (GSSTI) and the Tunisian Space Association.

Lack of infrastructure 

Africa’s second major challenge is a lack of space infrastructure, meaning that African states often have to rely on other countries for satellite launches. Indeed, only three of the eleven launch facilities in Africa are operational. This is one of the reasons that no country in Africa has yet carried out a manned spaceflight, although the primary obstacles to such plans remain their high cost and complexity.

The problem of data handling

The continent still faces challenges in the handling and use of space-derived data. “There is a wealth of Earth observation data available in Africa,” says Sarah Kimani, a meteorologist and satellite applications instructor at Kenya’s Meteorological Department in Nairobi. “However, despite its potential to enhance forecasts, specialists often do not fully utilize these datasets.”  

Kimani sees the fact that Earth observation data can seem overwhelming or difficult to use as the main issue, even for experienced meteorologists. This makes training in handling such data critically important. “If we don’t address this, Africa will be left behind,” she warns.  

Meanwhile, in Kenya alone, dozens of people die from lightning strikes each year. In March 2019, tropical cyclone Idai hit Africa, killing more than 1,500 people in just a few days. Many of these deaths could have been prevented with timely warnings and evacuations based on weather forecasts enhanced by satellite data.

Personnel shortages 

The shortage of skilled professionals is another one of the key obstacles to realizing the continent’s space potential. While the U.S. space sector employs more than 183,000 people, Africa as a whole has only about 19,000.  

“A workforce will need to be trained in everything from space diplomacy and law, to how to build small, affordable satellites. Our biggest challenge will be human capital,” says Tidiane Ouattara. “It’s not about the money.” He also emphasized, “The young people, they’re willing to be in this space era. But we have to build strong curricula and once trained, to use them properly, to create opportunities to employ them.”  

Some countries have already sent students and engineers abroad to gain experience in space technologies. “But the problem is that, when they return, there are no labs or equipment for them,” explains Temidayo Oniosun, managing director of Space in Africa. This approach has other drawbacks as well: talented students, seeing the opportunities available in the West, often choose to stay abroad to develop their engineering potential, contributing to “brain drain” in African countries.   

As a result, African governments now face a dual challenge: both attracting and training specialists and also retaining them by offering competitive salaries and career growth opportunities.

Where does Africa find its talent?

Both AfSA and individual national space agencies, with the support of partners, are working to overcome social inequality, provide African citizens with access to quality education, and train them as space engineers and scientists. Many of these initiatives are implemented in collaboration with universities across Africa and around the world.  

Africa is home to a branch of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), which was founded at Purdue University (Indiana, USA) in 1975. NSBE aims to inspire and prepare people of African descent for careers in the aerospace industry. Its initiatives include workshops, STEM masterclasses, field trips to aerospace events, and collaborations with African universities to develop additional educational programs. Furthermore, to help expand aerospace education opportunities, the Gulf Aviation Academy (GAA) and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2024 to enhance aviation and aerospace training in the Middle East and North Africa.  

In the fall of 2024, the University of Botswana launched the Center of Excellence in Planetary and Space Sciences as part of the FAST4Future initiative. The center is already conducting research and offering courses in astronomy, planetary sciences, and space technologies. This initiative is supported by the European Union through the Erasmus+ program. The university also collaborates with several African institutions that train aerospace professionals, including the University of the Witwatersrand, Copperbelt University, the University of Zambia, and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, as well as two European institutions: Bologna University and the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden.  

A similar initiative is the Pan-African Planetary and Space Science Network (PAPSSN), which specializes in training highly skilled professionals in planetary and space sciences.

In South Africa, the Aerospace Systems Research Institute (ASRI) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal is also engaged in workforce development. ASRI’s flagship program brings together scientists and students to design and test Phoenix hybrid sounding rockets. The institute also runs the School Outreach program, which introduces South African students, especially those from underprivileged areas, to aerospace engineering and STEM fields.  

Additionally, South Africa hosts a branch of the international organization, Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS), which promotes space-related initiatives through educational and engineering projects. SEDS operates at the University of Cape Town, where it organizes annual events like the NASA Space Apps Challenge hackathons, Smallsat conferences, International Space Weeks, and more.

For its part, Nigeria’s national space agency has established the Advanced Space Technology Laboratory, where students study satellite technology, remote sensing, and space communications. Additionally, regional UN centers for space science and technology operate in Morocco and Nigeria, offering university programs in remote sensing, satellite communications and metrology, and space sciences.  

The Kenya Space Agency (KSA) is also expanding its “space clubs,” which are educational programs focused on GEO-STEAM, which integrates geography, science, technology, arts, and mathematics. These programs target high school students and university students aspiring to join the space sector.  

In early 2025, the Egyptian Space Agency (EgSA) launched a comprehensive training program under the African Satellite Development Initiative (AfDev-Sat). As a result, more than 20 engineers from 20 African countries completed a ten-day course covering space project management, satellite system design, and orbital modeling. Since 2021, over 70 engineers from 34 African nations have completed similar practical training programs. The AfDev-Sat initiative itself was launched in 2019.  

Space technology clearly holds significant socio-economic potential for Africa, whose population is rapidly growing: it is expected to increase to 2.5 billion people by 2025, a 1 billion increase from the present. Space applications are already enhancing agricultural efficiency, helping to mitigate environmental disasters, and informing decision-making across various sectors. Africans have the potential to become global leaders in many areas of the space industry, from satellite development and ground infrastructure to applications that use space data to improve everyday life. However, for Africa to fully realize its space potential, it must overcome systemic barriers that have been built up over decades. This will require not only substantial investments in infrastructure and education but also strategic international collaboration. If achieved, the African space sector could become a model of how technology and innovation can transform an entire continent.