African Space Agency
Agency overview
Formed24 January 2023 (2023-01-24)
TypeSpace agency
JurisdictionAfrican Union
StatusActive
HeadquartersCairo, Egypt

The African Space Agency (AfSA) is a regional space organisation established by the African Union (AU) to promote cooperation between the space policies of the AU's member states. The AU adopted a space strategy in 2016 and agreed upon the statute underlying AfSA in 2018. In 2019, Egypt was declared the host and the organisation was established in January 2023 through an agreement between Egypt and the AU. The headquarters of the African Space Agency will be hosted in Cairo, alongside the Egyptian Space Agency (EGSA).[1]

History

Numerous unrelated space initiatives have emerged among and between various African Union countries. The Regional African Satellite Communication Organization (RASCOM) was an early regional initiative,[2]: 168  launched in 1992 with 45 members[3]: 10  and achieved limited success,[4]: 3  eventually launching one satellite in 2007 and another in 2010.[5] Two African Regional Centres for Space Science and Technology Education were set up in 1998, an English-speaking one in Nigeria and a French-speaking one in Morocco.[6]: 144  A proposed African Resource Management (ARM) satellite constellation joint project was proposed around 2000,[6]: 143  and founded in 2003 by Algeria, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa.[3]: 10  The first formal partnerships were agreed upon in 2009. Nigeria then launched NigSat-2 with the intention it be part of this constellation.[6]: 143  The first national space agencies among African Union states were the National Space Research and Development Agency of Nigeria, the Algerian Space Agency, and the South African National Space Agency. All operated in the early 21st century, alongside space programmes from other states.[6]: 142 

Discussions about setting up a pan-African space agency began around this period.[6]: 142  Planning was inspired by the European Space Agency.[7] The idea of such a space agency was included in the AU's 2009–2012 strategic plan.[2]: 168  An August 2010 declaration from the Third African Union (AU) Conference of Ministers in charge of Communications and Information Technologies directed the African Union Commission to look into developing such an agency alongside a dedicated space policy. The idea was supported the next month in a joint statement with the European Commission.[6]: 142  A September 2011 statement from the African Leadership Conference on Space Science and Technology for Sustainable Development states cooperation could occur before a pan-African institution was established.[6]: 144  A 2012 meeting of the same AU Conference of Ministers reiterated the call for an AU space policy.[2]: 169  The name "AfriSpace" was proposed at this time.[5] By 2014, a draft policy had been developed.[8]

An African Space Policy and Strategy was adopted in January 2016.[3]: 9  The AU continued to discuss development with the European Space Agency. Officials also met with the European Union Agency for the Space Programme.[7] During 2016 there were 20 national civilian space agencies and departments.[3]: 7  There were some views that a pan-African agency would be premature, with better outcomes being possible instead through focusing on increased cooperation between these national agencies.[6]: 145 [9]

The Statute of the African Space Agency was adopted in January 2018.[10]: 9  Bids to host the agency came from Egypt, Ethiopia, Namibia, and Nigeria. A bid from Ghana arrived too late, and Namibia later withdrew its bid.[11] The February 2019 32nd African Union Summit saw a resolution passed to create a headquarters for the agency which would be based in Egypt. It was intended that operations would begin in 2022.[10]: 3–4 [12] Egypt supported its bid by pledging $10 million to AfSA.[4]: 4–5  Following this decision the program was delayed, following concerns over budget availability and the immediate benefits to other countries.[13][14]

A final agreement was signed with host country Egypt on 24 January 2023, with the country agreeing to turn over the finished building to the institution by the end of the year.[12] AfSA will be opened in three phases throughout 2023.[15]

As of the formation of the AfSA in early 2023, less than 50 satellites were controlled by African states. Most of these belonged to Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, and South Africa.[7]

Location

The headquarters has been built in Egypt's Space City, alongside the Egyptian Space Agency (EGSA), located near the capital Cairo.[7] This site is intended to support other space-related buildings, including research buildings and satellite manufacturing plants.[10]: 7 

A Pan-African University of Space Science and Technology is expected to be set up in South Africa and support AfSA, although this initiative has stalled.[10]: 4 [16]

Aims

The agency was officially founded to promote policy and strategy cooperation and coordination within the African Union member states. It is intended to have a coordination role, rather than being directly involved with satellite production and space launches.[7]

The establishment of the agency is seen as a positive contribution to the AU's Agenda 2063,[7] with the AU's space policy and strategy being one of 15 key programmes within the agenda.[17]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Signature of the Host Agreement for the African Space Agency, in Cairo, 24 January 2023 | African Union". au.int. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 Aganaba-Jeanty, Timiebi (August 2013). "Precursor to an African Space Agency: Commentary on Dr Peter Martinez "Is there a need for an African Space Agency?"". Space Policy. 29 (3): 168–174. Bibcode:2013SpPol..29..168A. doi:10.1016/j.spacepol.2013.06.009. Archived from the original on 1 May 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Oyewole, Samuel (2 April 2020). "The quest for space capabilities and military security in Africa". South African Journal of International Affairs. 27 (2): 147–172. doi:10.1080/10220461.2020.1782258. ISSN 1022-0461. S2CID 221115191. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  4. 1 2 Aganaba-Jeanty, Timiebi (2016). "Realizing a Regional African Space Program" (PDF). International Astronautical Federation. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  5. 1 2 Timberlake, Ian (4 September 2012). "Africa eyes joint space agency". Phys.org. Archived from the original on 18 November 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Martinez, Peter (August 2012). "Is there a need for an African space agency?". Space Policy. 28 (3): 142–145. Bibcode:2012SpPol..28..142M. doi:10.1016/j.spacepol.2012.06.011. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pons, Juan (13 February 2023). "55 countries on the continent stand up the African Space Agency". Atalayar. Archived from the original on 23 February 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  8. ↑ Firsing, Scott (11 May 2015). "Africa is jumping into the space race". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  9. ↑ Giles, Chris (16 May 2018). "Africa leaps forward into space technology". CNN. Archived from the original on 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Garrido Guijarro, Óscar (16 November 2022). "A common African outer space policy to meet the continent 's challenges" (PDF). Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "32nd Ordinary Session of the African Union Commission endorsed Egypt to host the African Space Agency". Space in Africa. 11 February 2019. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  12. 1 2 "Egypt to host African Space Agency headquarters". Egypt Today. 24 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  13. ↑ Pranay Varada (15 April 2022). "The Space Race Expands: Why African Nations Are Looking Beyond Earth". Harvard International Review. Archived from the original on 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  14. ↑ Munyaradzi Makoni (24 February 2020). "Plans for African Space Agency jeopardized by lack of progress". Physics World. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  15. ↑ "Signature of the Host Agreement for the African Space Agency, in Cairo, 24 January 2023". African Union. 24 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  16. ↑ Offiong, Etim (18 April 2022). "Africa has ambitious goals for 2063: plans for outer space hold the key to success". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  17. ↑ Val Munsami (3 August 2022). "Why Africa needs to be in space". Chatham House. Archived from the original on 4 August 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2023.

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