Nigeria to build satellite by 2018

Nigeria is working to have the capability to locally design and build a satellite by 2018 and to have the capability to launch one by 20130, says S. O. Mohammed, director general of the Nigerian National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA).
Speaking in an interview with the Cable News Network, Mohammed disclosed that the agency has already launched five satellites into orbit since 2003, though none was launched from within Nigeria. The agency plans to launch more in the near future, given the right funding.
“We are not part of the race for the moon, we’re not part the race for Mars,” he said. “What we need to look at is using the space program to look at how we can create typical Nigerian solutions to most of our problems.”
Mohammed’s immediate priority is launching a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite capable of penetrating cloud coverage. The images it produces should help monitor activity in the Gulf of Guinea, which has recently seen a rise in pirate activity.
He says these projects are about “capacity building” -advancements that will eventually turn Nigeria into a regional space innovation hub.
NASRDA’s has 2,000-member staff. Mohammed recalls that when he started at the agency eight years ago, it boasted just six scientists with PhDs. Now, the number of PhDs on staff has increased to 70, and another 50 employees are studying in pursuit of advanced degrees.
NASRDA has been granted $20 million this financial year to keep operations going, but it needs $65 million more to get its next satellite project off the ground.

 

OBODO EJIRO