Africa considers space as “an end means” – DW – 15/09/2025

For Tamideo Oniosun, history is the same as ever: “space is nothing new in Africa”. But the dimensions have changed, said the scientist of the space and founder of Space in Africa, a reflection group in Lagos, Nigeria.

At the start of the space race in the 1960s, African countries played an important role in Apollo Moon’s missions, Oniosun told DW. They hosted critical infrastructure, without which, “the missions would not have been possible”.

“But no one talked about it,” said Oniosun. “When America sent [NASA astronaut] Neil Armstrong on the Moon, it was not like: “It’s good for America, and we thank Africa and other regions for their contribution.” But Africa played a role in this. And the reason why we tell this story is to provide the context that space is not a whole new thing in Africa. “”

What has changed, however, is that African countries do not only organize infrastructure – they build and have the infrastructure, the design and launch of satellites, with a spatial technology specific to the needs of the continent.

The science of space in Africa is “niche”

According to Oniosun, it is important to understand that “space is a way to reach an end” in Africa. This is the technology that people use to improve their lives.

“These guys do not think:” We want to go to the moon or Mars. “They think:” I can use this satellite to provide connectivity to my village.

Many satellite data is available for free. But African countries have specific needs for the equatorial region, and European programs and other satellites often do not meet these needs.

Olugbenga Olumodimu, head of the space program at the University of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom, thinks that African space science is “very niche”.

“If I try to reproduce [what I do here] In Africa, this will not work, “he told DW.” So I have to learn the physics of the equator. You have to understand what they are doing, to do what you know, applicable. “”

Sometimes it is a question of using different instruments to measure the data specific to the region or to position a satellite at a particular angle to obtain the best measures. But in the end, it comes down to the data that people in Africa need.

Take, for example, solar storms – or space weather – which is a global threat. A serious solar storm has the potential to remove national electrical networks, and this effect can be the same in more than one region at the same time.

Other effects may vary from region to region. In the latitudes of the northern planet, solar storms are considered a threat to radio signals, such as communications between planes and soil control stations. In Nigeria, solar storms are considered a greater threat to the performance of oil pipelines, a major factor in its hydrocarbon economy.

But assemble the two data sets and everyone gets a more complete image of the effects of solar time.

“If certain parts of the earth are not sufficiently covered like other places, then science is not complete,” said Olumodimu. “We work together to make science effective.”

Olumodimu noted that there were plans for collaboration to design a satellite that will measure the effects of space times in high and medium latitudes and in the equatorial region at the same time.

“When we have this kind of data, it is easier to do what we call global science,” he said.

In South Africa, soldiers are also concerned about the effects of solar time. He shares this data – for example, with the European Space Agency – which then makes the data available as a global service.

“Such services generally last decades,” said Thomas Weissenberg, an Africa expert in external relations to the European Space Agency. “A solar storm could strike satellites and simply destroy them. It could be the end of many satellites of observation of the earth, communication satellites, starry bond and so on.”

Europe and Africa have collaborated on space projects for 30 years. In January 2025, the European Commission was delighted with a new Africa-Eu-EU space partnership program worth 100 million euros ($ 117 million).

“”[Our partnership] has become more intensive, especially in the past five to eight years due to developments in Africa and Europe as well. Geopolitical reasons could also play a role, “Weissenberg told DW.

The African space agency marks a new chapter

When Africa Space Agency (AFSA) was inaugurated in April 2025 in Cairo, Egypt, it may well have marked a new chapter in the history of African space. AFSA aims to bring together countries to work together, share infrastructure and data.

“You have countries like Egypt, Nigeria, Algeria and South Africa – some of their national space programs have more than two decades,” said Oniosun. “Then you have relatively young space programs – the Kenyane space agency was founded in 2017, in Ethiopia and Rwanda. Countries like this are at a different level. Now everyone is talking.”

Olumodimu makes the distinction between “spatial” countries and “spatial suction” countries, without wanting to offend any of the youngest space countries, as he added.

“When we started in Nigeria with the first communication satellite, part of the work was carried out at the Surrey Satellite Center, in the United Kingdom, and the launch was made from Asia,” said Olumodimu. “But right now, a lot is happening in the African continent itself.”

We hope that AFSA will help the transfer of knowledge and technology on the African continent, regardless of the level of expertise in a country. And that seems to work: everyone seeks to collaborate with Egypt, the host country of AFSA.

“The ambition of Egypt is to be at the forefront [of space in Africa]”Said Olumodimu.

The way AFSA’s fortune will develop is “uncertain,” said Weissenberg. “Africa is even more complicated in Europe.” There is a good chance that they will succeed – if only the fact that they have the support of China.

“A word on Egypt,” said Weissenberg, “they are intelligent. They launched a strategic partnership with China.”

Weissenberg underlines that China has built the whole AFSA site, from buildings to technical infrastructure. And in exchange for their investment, “they obtain control of Africa. It’s as simple as that.”

Published by: Uwe Hessler