The space industry is one of the fastest-growing industries worldwide. In Africa, Space technology has provided socio-economic returns such as increased industrial activities, cost efficiencies, and productivity gains. In 2021, the African space industry was estimated to be worth around $20 billion (€27 billion). This amount is projected to increase to $23 billion by 2026. More space-based agencies and institutional centres are now established on the continent, working to develop space technology and provide space-based services in a variety of industries, including telecommunications, defense, security, shipping, aviation, mining, agriculture, environment, development, education, and health. In the twenty-four years after South Africa launched SunSat-1, the first African satellite, into orbit, the industry has developed with hundreds of millions of dollars spent. Capacity Building in Space Science and Technology - CESRA The Centre for Space Research and Applications (CESRA) of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA, Nigeria) is a university-based space research center that was founded in December 2008 with the primary goal of developing and utilizing space science and technology for a variety of institutional requirements in Africa. CESRA has been actively involved in all training and research aspects of Space Science and Technology applications such as forestry, agriculture, natural water resources, environmental analysis, climate change adaptation, disaster monitoring, land use, oceanography; telecommunication etc. Other national and local organizations that have a focus on space science and technology training and research have been linked with CESRA since inception. Among them are the Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech), the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), the African Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education in English (ARCSSTE-E), the African Regional Institute for Geospatial Information Science and Technology (AFRIGIST), and many more. The Centre, in conjunction with ARCSSTE-E and AFRIGIST, has produced over 200 graduate spread across the globe, many of whom have enrolled in PhD programs in Europe, America and Asia. The Centre has also trained over 1,000 undergraduate students and interns since inception. Some of whom were able to secure fully funded admissions through MEXT, WASCAL, DAAD, OKP, ERASMUS and Mastercard Foundation scholarships. In 2017 NigeriaEduSat-1, along with four other satellites of the BIRDS constellation were launched to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of cargo on a Space X dragon spacecraft on its 11th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-11) mission. NigeriaEduSat-1 is Nigeria’s first nanosatellite and developed by FUTA, with the support of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA). [email protected] [email protected] #spacetechnology #spacescience #earthobservation #spaceindustry
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