Across the continent, military forces stalk insurgents and violent extremists, peering through range finders and binoculars, rifle scopes and night vision goggles. In some battle spaces, drones search from the sky for targets.
The tactics work to an extent, but Soldiers face constant threats when they don’t have a clear view of the battlefield. Drones can be heard, then seen, then shot down or avoided.
One type of technology, however, takes operators way above the fray, collecting views of everything from severe weather to infrastructure needs and troop movements. Countries across Africa are leaning into satellite and space technology to track people, spot maritime threats, survey the effects of natural disasters and more.
“Remote sensing applications provide a myriad of products and services, including monitoring the state of our natural resources, observing ship traffic in our coastal economic zones and providing information for precision farming that can help a farmer decide, for example, when to irrigate and how much fertilizer to use,” Val Munsami, chancellor of the International Space University in France, wrote for Chatham House in 2022.
Satellite technology can see changes that portend waterborne diseases, improve maritime and aviation navigation, and provide positioning data for medical, postal, urban planning, infrastructure and other critical public services, wrote Munsami, who is the former CEO of the South African National Space Agency (SANSA).
“The applications and problem-solving innovations provided by space products and services are endless.”
African nations have begun to invest more resources in the promise of space technology as a security and development asset. At least 21 nations scattered across the continent have established a space-related agency or organization. Some have launched their own satellites and are building multinational relationships through conferences and agreements.
SATELLITES BRING PERSPECTIVE
Kenya has been especially active in advancing its space program. In April 2023, the Kenya Space Agency (KSA) launched Taifa-1, its first earth observation satellite, aboard a SpaceX rocket in California. The small satellite’s mission is to collect agricultural and environmental data, including on floods, drought and wildfires, to aid disaster management and address food insecurity, Reuters reported.
“We have the challenges that have been brought about by climate change, which the satellite, by virtue of being able to capture images (will be able to help monitor),” Alloyce Were, an aeronautical engineer and deputy director of Navigation and Positioning at the KSA, told Reuters before the launch. “We can monitor forest changes; we can monitor urbanization changes.”
At $372,000 to build, Taifa-1 offers enviable value for its cost, which is just more than a third of the average unit price of one M1117 Guardian armored security vehicle.
In June 2024, the country held its second Kenya Space Expo & Conference in Nairobi themed “Space Technologies for Societal Benefits.” The expo included representatives from government, academia, business, international groups and the public in a “dialogue on the use of space technologies in addressing societal needs,” according to an event concept note.
The objectives were to showcase the applications of space technology and how they can benefit society, exchange ideas, encourage collaboration, raise public awareness, and encourage innovation and promote investment in the space economy.
During the expo’s opening ceremony, Aden Duale, Kenyan cabinet secretary for defense, listed a wide range of effects space technology can have on the country, such as improved food security, supply-chain management, supporting energy production and predicting natural disasters.
“Kenya cannot afford to be left behind in this favorable future outlook for the global space economy,” Duale said. “That is why as a government, we are taking our national space program seriously.”
African nations see space technology primarily as a development tool. That is the right approach, Nigerian Temidayo Oniosun, managing director of Space in Africa, a marketing and consulting provider based in Lagos, Nigeria, told Le Monde in 2023.
In 2021 and 2022, Angola, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mauritius and Uganda acquired new satellites, Le Monde reported, which brought the total number of African satellites to 55 in orbit at the time. It’s not a significant number in terms of the tens of thousands circling the world, but most were launched in a five- to seven-year span, and many more were in development, Oniosun said.
SPACE AND SECURITY
Uganda launched its first satellite in November 2022. PearlAfricaSat-1 breached Earth’s atmosphere aboard a Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft launched from a United States NASA facility in Virginia. The craft also carried Zimbabwe’s first satellite, ZimSat-1. Both went to the International Space Station, where they were eventually deployed.
Both satellites, created with cooperation from Japan, are to be used for earth observation. But Uganda has gone on record as eyeing outer space as a tool for national security.
Less than a year after the deployment of PearlAfricaSat-1, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni told graduating cadet officers in the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces that the nation would launch a satellite to enhance security operations.
According to a September 2023 Space in Africa report, Museveni said “the Ugandan army is building its capacity to deal with all threats. The planned satellite launch, expected to act as eyes for the military, will reinforce our insights into security threats. In the early stages, we had only the infantry. However, we are now working towards launching a satellite.”
The satellite will monitor border areas, track potential threats and lead to more effective responses to security breaches.
Space has become an essential arena for modern military and intelligence operations, according to the website New Space Economy. Satellites can provide a range of security functions, such as:
- Communications: Satellites make secure, encrypted communication possible on land, at sea and in the air.
- Navigation and geolocation: Global positioning systems provide reliable navigational guidance in civilian and military applications.
- Surveillance and reconnaissance: High-resolution cameras and sensors can provide vital intelligence.
- Early warning systems: Satellites can detect missile launches, troop and ship movements, and other potential threats, providing more response time.
THE FUTURE
African countries are not content to simply launch satellites and collect data for themselves. Across the continent nations are showing a willingness and ability to engage with international partners in the spirit of advancing space technology globally and even supporting further crewed space exploration.
One of Africa’s smallest countries, Mauritius, deployed its first satellite, MIR-SAT1, in 2021. In April 2024, Mauritius also held its first International Space Symposium, a two-day event aimed at “knowledge sharing, exploration, innovation, and unity,” according to a government statement.
SANSA in 2022 renewed a lunar exploration partnership with NASA by breaking ground on a site for a new communications center that will support Artemis, which intends to return people to the moon and set the stage for further space exploration.
A new Lunar Exploration Ground Sites (LEGS) antenna is planned for Matjiesfontein, South Africa. The two countries also signed a joint statement of intent to formalize their space exploration partnership. The LEGS antenna will be the second of three 18- to 24-meter devices placed around the world “to ensure near-continuous connectivity between Earth and astronauts aboard NASA’s Artemis spacecraft, as well as spacecraft in orbit around the Moon,” NASA reported. It is expected to be completed in 2026.
The Artemis program is NASA’s ambitious mission to put the first woman and person of color on the moon, establish a long-term presence there, and use what is learned to send the first astronauts to Mars. And an African nation will take part in making it happen.