THE NIGERIAN SPACE AGENCY

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In this post,  I will be discussing the Nigerian Space Agency, its functions and the highlights of its activities.

                                       

On 27 August 2010, The National Space Research and Development Act which formally establishes the Agency, and empowers the National Space Council as the regulatory and supervisory entity for space activities in Nigeria was adopted.

Prior to the establishment of NASRDA, some space centres and projects already existed. These are the National Centre for Remote Sensing in Jos, Nigeria, and the Centre for Space Science and Technology Education affiliated to the United Nations, located at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

Currently, the Agency oversees the six Activities Centers which are saddled with unique responsibilities directly relevant to the mission statement of NASRDA. They are the:

1.    “Centre for Satellite Technology Development (CSTD), Abuja; with the mandate to undertake satellite manufacture and space missions.

2.     Centre for Space Transport and Propulsion (CSTP), Lagos State; with the mandate to manufacture rockets and develop launch facilities 

3.     Centre for Basic Space Science and Astronomy (CBSSA), Enugu State; with the mandate to carry out research and development in space environment

4.     Centre for Space Science Technology Education (CSSTE), Osun State; with the mandate to undertake capacity building in all areas of Space science and Technology.

5.      National Centre for Remote Sensing, Jos, with the mandate to carry out research and development in areas of Earth Observation and Remote Sensing.

6.     Centre for Geodesy and Geodynamics, Toro; with the mandate to carry out research and development in areas of crustal movement.” 

The objective of the Nigeria National space policy programme is to make space research and development activities part of the overall strategies for sustainable national development.

                                    

 

Some of the functions of NASRDA as provided for in the Act include “Developing satellite technology for various applications and operationalizing indigenous space system for providing space services, and being the government agency charged with the responsibility of building and launching satellites”, “Promoting the coordination of space application programs for the purpose of optimizing resources and developing space technologies of direct relevance to national objectives”, “Encouraging capacity building in space science technology development and management, thereby strengthening the human resources development required for the implementation of space programs”, and “Reviewing the national policy on space, including long-range goals, and developing a strategy for national space issues.”

                                       

By virtue of the Act, the Agency issues Licenses on the condition that the licensee provides information to the Council concerning the “Nature, conduct, location and results of the licensee’s activities.” An advance approval of the Council must be obtained for any intended deviation from orbital parameters and it is obligatory to inform the Council immediately of any unintended deviation.

To achieve its goals, NASRDA has recognized the importance of capacity building and international collaboration. It is actively engaged in space research and development such as; the training of Nigerian scientists and engineers on the design and building of all subsystems of the Nigeriasat-1 spacecraft; Orbit maintenance and housekeeping of ground control station; Know how technology transfers (KHTT) training on communication satellite design; Global monitoring of Disaster using the Disaster Monitoring constellation satellite; Telemedicine, e-government and e-conference application services.

It has been able to train fifteen young Nigerian Scientists and engineers on the design and building of all subsystems of the Nigeriasat-1 spacecraft.

                                  

Although the private sector is currently not involved in commercial space activities in Nigeria, the Government has set up a space economic development model which involves a ‘public-private partnership’ of short, medium, and long-term plans.

Within the short-term plan, the government is responsible for all investments in space technology development. In the medium-term, the government is to implement the partial commercialization of NASRDA’s products and services developed during the short-term economic plan. Finally, in the long-term plan, the government seeks to partner with the private sector to fully implement the partnership framework for the space program.

While Nigeria is confident that the general conditions and competences of monitoring and enforcement would suffice for the desired level of control, this “leniency” has been regarded as contradictory due to the substantive licensing fee of US$2,000,000 which the Draft Regulations establish. (The Draft regulations is discussed in a subsequent post).

If Nigeria is interested in stimulating private participation in its space activities, attention should be paid to ensure that the requirements for licensing are not interpreted as if licensing is seen more as a “Cash cow” for the government than as an instrument for balancing the interests of the general public in Nigeria.

Notably, an explicit function of the Agency is now to “Develop national strategies for the exploitation of outer space and make these part of the overall national development strategies, and implement strategies for promoting private sector participation in the space industry.”

                                   

In addition, there is an ongoing project on Nigeriasat-2 at Surrey, UK.

Nigeria has entered into binding obligations through contracts, bilateral agreements, and Memoranda of Understanding with various entities, both governmental and nongovernmental to strengthen its space advancement.

Irrespective of the fact that Nigeria is a developing country and lack competence manpower in space research and development, a few modest achievements have been recorded by the agency through international collaborations with space technology developed countries and companies all over the world.

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