Excitement As African Space Agency Takes Big Leap
The African Space Agency has roared to life with a formal inauguration ceremony on 20th April 2025, during the NewSpace Africa Conference, attracting dignitaries worldwide, including ministers and ambassadors from various countries.
At the event, Dr. Valanathan Munsami, former CEO of SANSA and Chair of the AU Space Working Group, highlighted Africa’s unique opportunity to lead in the global space sector through unity, innovation, and sustainable development, giving some historical context to the creation of the African Space Policy and Strategy
The ceremony featured goodwill messages from top representatives of global space institutions, including Marco Ferrazzani, Director of Internal Services, European Space Agency (ESA), Karen Feldstein, Associate Administrator for International and Interagency Relations, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and H.E. Salem Butti Salem Al Qubaisi, Director General, UAE Space Agency
Others were Jean-Marc Astorg, Director of Strategy, Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales – CNES, Mr. KIKUCHI Koichi, the Deputy Director of International Relations and Research Department, JAXA (Japan), Dr Driss El-Hadani, Deputy Director, UNOOSA, Mr. Luca Maria Salamone, Director General of the Italian Space Agency, and others, reaffirming international support for Africa’s space ambitions.
African national heads of space agencies from Gabon, Kenya, Nigeria, Angola, and Egypt, representing Central, East, West, North, and Southern Africa, also delivered remarks showcasing regional commitments to collaborative space development.
A significant highlight of the event was the official unveiling of the African Space Agency logo and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between AfSA and the European Space Agency, during which the ESA gave a goodwill gift of the ESA flag that had been to space to the African Space Agency, marking the beginning of deeper institutional cooperation.
At the inaugural event, high-level addresses from H.E. Mr. Mário Augusto da Silva Oliveira, Minister of Telecommunications, Information Technology, and Social Communication, Angola, Dr. Badr Abdelatty, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Egyptian Affairs, and H.E, Mr Moses Vilakati – Commissioner, Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) Department, AUC, reinforced the political will driving Africa’s space future.
H.E. Dr. Tidiane Ouattara, President of tle Council of the African Space Council, delivered the welcome address, while H.E. Ayman Ashour, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Egypt, representing H.E. Prof. Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister of Egypt, delivered the keynote, emphasising the strategic importance of space to Africa’s development trajectory and the symbolism of the Egypt hosting the African Space Agency.
The inauguration, hosted by Dr Temidayo Oniosun, Managing Director of Space in Africa, concluded with a symbolic ribbon-cutting ceremony, officially declaring the African Space Agency building operational.
The event cemented Africa’s commitment to space sovereignty and continental integration and positioned AfSA as a central institution in Africa’s science, technology, and innovation future.
