African states are tapping into advanced space-tech as today’s increasingly connected world calls for space infrastructures as essential to the development of nations.

While the Global North and their Eastern counterparts have taken the limelight in space developments, much has been brewing in the continent of Africa. Now worth USD19.49 billion, Africa’s space and satellite sector has seen much progress and is further expected to grow by 16.16% to USD22.64 billion by 2026. In fact, according to the African Space Industry Annual Report 2022, African countries have set aside a total of USD534.9 million for their respective space programmes and operations in 2022, a 2.24% increase from the revised USD523.2 million in 2021. Bulk of this valuation is attributed to the satellite communication market, and satellite manufacturing is expected to grow in the coming years.

Source: Africa in Space

Infrastructures are vital ingredients in creating sustainable cities with improved living conditions. And in today’s globalized and digitally connected world, space infrastructures are essential to the development of nations at large. In this manner, satellite operations and services have paved the way for Africa’s socioeconomic and environmental growth. As a nod to this perspective, up until 2022, 13 African states have developed 48 satellites, and more than 23 African countries are looking to launch their own satellites by 2026.

Although the increased manufacturing costs and lengthy development time for large satellites have pushed the demand for small satellites, much has been achieved in terms of applications in Internet of Things (IoT), weather forecasting and early warning systems, crop and livestock monitoring for agricultural purposes. 

Moreover, in navigating the new space age, an estimated 272 companies across 31 African nations are leading the continent with innovative ways to implement state-of-the-art solutions (founded in space technology and derived data) across sectors, such as medicine, manufacturing and logistics. When modern human lifestyle is tightly integrated and fuelled with the use of space-dependent technologies and services, it is not surprising when space science and technology is increasingly prioritized on a national, or even continental, level. Consequently, a flourishing new space industry is crucial to enhancing African space agencies’ capabilities while marching towards a future in building spaceports to facilitate the launch of African satellites.