Africa is positioning itself as a key player in the global space industry, moving beyond being a consumer of space technologies to becoming a producer. Speaking at the Salon International de l’Intelligence Artificielle, de la Défense et de l’Espace (SIADE) on 20 February 2025, Dr Tidiane Ouattara, President of the Council of the African Space Agency (AfSA), emphasised that Africa’s future depends on harnessing space technologies for agriculture, security, climate monitoring, and disaster response.
“Space is no longer a luxury; it is a necessity,” he stated, urging Africa to transition from passive use to active innovation. With a projected $22 billion revenue by 2026, he stressed the need for a strong structural framework, strategic investment, and public-private partnerships to drive Africa’s space ambitions.
The African Space Agency, in collaboration with the Ivorian government and OTIF AFRICA SPACE, is already taking action. Dr Ouattara announced the Marché Africain des Solutions Spatiales (MASS), scheduled for 6-8 May 2025 in Abidjan, bringing together key stakeholders to explore solutions for agriculture, resource management, telecommunications, and energy.
On security, he highlighted that space capabilities are essential for modern defence systems and African sovereignty. “The battlefield of the future is in space. To defend our territories and secure our future, we must invest in space capabilities today,” he asserted.
His speech was not just a vision—it was a call to action. Africa’s space sovereignty, he concluded, must be built on African innovation, industries, and leadership.
