Kenya has secured 15 PhD scholarships in space discipline that the Italian government is funding in what is expected to build skills in the sector.
The candidates who will be taking a course in earth observation areas are expected to start studies in September, Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale announced at the second edition of the Kenya Space Expo and Conference in Nairobi that ended on June 20.
Among other benefits, the PhDs are expected to firm up Kenya’s resolve in developing indigenous capacity in space systems engineering, technologies and applications.
According to the Kenya Space Agency, different government agencies using geospatial data have been asked to nominate candidates for the three-year courses. By the time of going to press it was not clear how much the programmes will cost.
“The KSA (Kenya Space Agency) has invited relevant key government agencies using geospatial data to benefit from this opportunity,” the KSA told A Plain in an interview.
While Kenya has about 2,000 remote sensing and geospatial experts, the country seems to have a vacuum in aerospace medicine with only two specialists “with advanced qualification”, according to the space agency.
The KSA also estimates that Kenya has 20 space lawyers; 100 space systems engineers; 200 ground station engineers, while physicists in the sector are about 500.
More than 400 delegates from Kenya and 12 other countries converged for the three-day event attended by space science and technology experts drawn from industry, government, academia and civil society under the theme, ‘Space technologies for societal benefits’.
“We have built reasonable capacity to shepherd our national space programme,” said Mr Duale, citing Kenya’s successful launching of two satellites, starting with Kenya University Nano-Satellite-Precursor Flight in May 2018 and Taifa-1 in April last year.
Kenya is preparing to become a key player in the budding space sector in Africa at a time the global space economy is projected to grow from $635 billion in 2023 to $1.8 trillion in 2035, according an April 2024 McKinsey study.
The Nairobi conference attracted exhibitors from leading companies in the space industry from, among others, the US, China, India, Italy, UK, France, Spain, Bulgaria and South Africa.
India, Italy, China, US, UK, France, Spain, Bulgaria, Egypt, South Africa and Uganda also had delegates.
Among other calls to action, the delegates asked Kenya government to design sound policies, legal and regulatory framework “that promotes local and foreign direct investment, and the growth of a thriving domestic space industry.”
Space science and technology spans a number of sectors and areas, including agriculture, transportation, land, climate change, and security.
Kenya is working on collaborations to use outer space with several regional and international partners, including Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, and Sudan.
Mr Duale announced plans to establish a Centre for Earth Observation at the Luigi Broglio Malindi Space Centre in Malindi as well as an International Training Centre for Space Education and a Centre for Cubesat Development in partnership with the Italian Space Agency.
The centres will enhance national and regional capabilities through training and apprenticeship of the next generation of space professionals, he announced.
The conference asked the government to support the private sector in development of innovations for downstream applications considering the great potential for data commercialisation across different sectors.
Speaking on one of the panels, Telkom Kenya CEO Mugo Kibati called for greater public awareness to promote the sector, adding that the telecoms sector was ready to forge partnerships with the Kenya Space Agency to address specific needs.
Funding models and strategies were explored, and recommendations from other countries made to the KSA and the Government of Kenya on approaches needed to de-risk the sector.
In a speech read on his behalf by Mr Duale, Kenya Prime Cabinet Secretary, Musalia Mudavadi, said space-based technologies were becoming prevalent seen in well-known creations making daily lives more meaningful.
“We now have ride-hailing apps, such as Uber, Bolt, Little, and many others that are pervasive and common-use with global reach thanks to satellite-based technology that connects drivers and riders and providing navigation services,” said Mr Mudavadi.
editor@aplain.co.ke
