Nigeria has announced plans to send an astronaut into space by 2030, as part of its drive to develop a world-class space industry.

“The space program is very important,” said Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, Minister of Science and Technology, during a speech in the capital city Abuja. “Space is a major asset that Nigeria must be involved in for the purpose of protecting national interests.”

A Nigerian Space Agency delegation will visit partners in China this month to discuss logistics and investment for a manned space mission, which would be the first by an African nation.

The case for space

Dr. Onu’s announcement has been greeted with skepticism, partly as it came soon after a scam email demanding $3 million for a lost Nigerian astronaut went viral, and as policy announcements from the new government have been scoring poorly on the Buharimeter, a Nigerian civil society website assessing policy commitments. Onu also recently announced plans to start a pencil manufacturing industry that would create 400,000 jobs.

But Nigeria’s space program is no joke, and it is making steady progress. The National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) has launched five satellites since 2003, with three still in orbit delivering vital services. The most recent - NigeriaSat-X – was the first to be designed and constructed by NASRDA engineers, and more advanced models are in development.

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The space agency has made extensive and creative use of the satellites, from analyzing climate data to improve farming practices, to retrieving hostages from Boko Haram, and officials argue this proves space exploration is essential for Nigeria.

“We contribute to various sectors that benefit the nation,” says Felix Ale, NASRDA communications chief. “Space applications are key to development.”

Capacity has improved through greater investment in infrastructure and skills, says Ale, adding that NASRDA has now trained over 300 staff to PhD or BsC level.

Crucially, the industry also benefits from political will at the highest level.

“The president is committed to the program,” says Ale. “To ensure that dreams transfer to reality.”

Grand ambition

Launching an astronaut into orbit represents a greater challenge than Nigeria’s previous missions, but leading figures from the space industry are optimistic.

“To train an astronaut from selection to flight takes about eight years,” says Dr. Spenser Onuh, head of the Centre for Satellite Technology Development. “2030 is realistic in my opinion…Responses from the international collaborators are very supportive and encouraging.”

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Professor Calestous Juma, a specialist on space programs in developing countries at the Harvard Kennedy School, suggests the mission represents “lofty ambition” that “may or may not happen as planned.”

But he believes that the vision is more important than the outcome.

“Scientific, technological and engineering capabilities would have direct economic benefits to Nigeria long before the decision of putting a person in space is made,” says Juma. “Space walks are probably the least important. It is the scientific and technological infrastructure and its linkages to the rest of the economy that matters.”

Inspiring a continent

The Nigerian space program has ambitions beyond its borders, and it is hoped that bold statements – such as a manned mission – will inspire stargazers across the continent.

“This would be a landmark achievement for Nigeria and Africa, which will encourage the rest of Africa to get involved,” says Ale.

Nigeria already shares resources from its space assets, such as providing satellite imagery to Mali, and has supported the idea of an African Space Agency.

With an ever-increasing number of African states investing in space programs, while traditional powerhouses downsize, the continent could be the hotspot of exploration for years to come.

Fleets of drones carrying crucial goods such as medicine will soon streak the skies of Rwanda, putting the small east-central African country at the forefront of a technological revolution.

Designed to be cheap, simple and robust, the drones will have payloads of up to 100 kg (220lb), while the droneports will function as hubs to allow recharging, cargo loading and dropoff, as well as repairs.

With the project expected to break ground in 2016, a functioning drone delivery network could be in place as early as 2020.

The project is the brainchild of Jonathan Ledgard, head of the Afrotech project at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), and world-renowned British architect Norman Foster.

"I went to Norman because I knew that there was no one else on the planet better suited than him to design this," Ledgard told CNN.
"I said, you designed the largest airport in the world -- now build me the smallest."

The buildings are designed to be extremely easy to construct, with architects Forster+Partners leveraging on their experience with airports -- they created the world's largest airport terminal in Beijing -- as well as more outlandish projects such as one involving a 3D-printed moon base that they designed with the European Space Agency.

All the raw materials will be sourced on site, reducing transportation costs, with the droneport consisting of a 'kit-of-parts' that can be easily assembled by local communities.

"Rwanda's challenging geographical and social landscape makes it an ideal test-bed for the Droneport project," said Norman Foster while presenting the initiative, which he reckons could have "a massive impact through the century and save lives immediately."

"The droneport itself will be a mix between a railway station, a petrol station, a blacksmith shop and a post office," said Ledgard, who points out that the network will provide distribution hubs rather the a "last mile" delivery infrastructure.

"Nobody cares about the last mile in Africa," he says, highlighting the difference between the droneport idea and what Amazon and other vendors are planning to do with drones in Western markets, where unmanned aerial vehicles are touted to be the next innovative step in the final delivery of consumer goods of any type, including pizza.

Each droneport will take two to three years to build, at a projected cost of about $300,000.

"We wanted a concept that was really cheap," said Ledgard, "and the drones themselves will contain a tiny amount of super high-tech and a lot of low-tech."

Built to be robust, economical and simple to repair, they will be powered by electric engines and have a fixed wing design, more closely resembling commercial planes rather than quadrocopters.

The idea could have a great impact on the local economies of developing African countries: "This is a multi-billion dollar industry, without question," said Ledgard.

For the initial applications, the team is looking at blood for transfusions and other life-giving supplies such as pharmaceuticals. But the network could then extend to perishable goods and e-commerce purchases.

Droneports aren't intended to replace road networks in Africa, but increase their capacity: "Road systems are going to improve a bit in the future, but not enough to move the economy along," said Ledgard.

"But even increasing your transportation capacity by a small percentage can be beneficial, especially for high value, perishable goods."

While the project is progressing rapidly, Ledgard offers a word of caution: "We want to emphasize that there are still a lot of questions," he said.

"But we're making good progress: We intend to break ground next year, and I would be very disappointed it if we didn't."

Two types of drones have been designed, with a larger version capable of a 100kg payload to enter service in a second phase, around 2025.

They will fly at a projected speed of about 90 km/h over lakes, rivers and mountain ridges, and offer extremely competitive costs compared to road transportation.

For the network to be functional, three droneports are needed, and they would be able to cover a significant portion of rural Rwanda.

Ledgard, whose intimate knowledge of the continent also comes from a decade of work as news correspondent from troubled areas, envisions the idea to soon expand to other countries, with Angola, Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire as ideal candidates.
But the droneports would be useful outside of Africa as well, wherever road networks are limited, such as in Siberia, parts of Brazil and Argentina, Canada and even the North of Scotland.

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